V2835 


I 


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REV.    LOUIS    FITZGERALD    BENSON.   D.  D. 

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PRINCETON   THEOLOGICAL   SEMINARY 


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SUMERIAN  HYMNS 


CONTRIBUTIONS  TO  ORIENTAL  HISTORY  AND  PHILOL 

No.  I 


SUMERIAN  HYMNS 


FROM 


CUNEIFORM  TEXTS  IN  THE  BRITISH  MUSEUM 

TRANSLITERATION,  TRANSLATION 
AND  COMMENTARY 


BY 


FREDERICK  AUGUSTUS  VANDERBURGH,  Ph.D. 


3£eta  Jgotft 

THE  COLUMBIA  UNIVERSITY  PRESS 
1908 

All  rights  reserved 


TRINTED  BY  G.  KREYSING,  LEIPZIG,  GERMANY 


Note 

The  so-called  "Sumerian  Question"  as  to  the  genuine  linguistic 
character  of  the  ancient  Non-Semitic  Babylonian  texts  has  agitated 
the  Assyriological  world  for  more  than  twenty  years.  The  new 
Sumerian  matter  from  the  monuments  which  is  constantly  coming 
to  hand  demands ,  in  the  interest  of  all  those  who  can  look  upon 
this  discussion  with  impartial  eyes,  a  most  rigid  and  unprejudiced 
examination.  Dr.  Vanderburgh  in  the  following  monograph  has 
adhered  to  the  views  expounded  in  my  "Materials  for  a  Sumerian 
Lexicon"  (J.  C.  Hinrichs'sche  Buchhandlung,  1905 — 1907),  that  the 
so-called  Sumerian  was  originally  a  Non-Semitic  agglutinative  lan- 
guage which,  in  the  course  of  many  centuries  of  Semitic  influences, 
became  so  incrusted  with  Semiticisms,  most  of  them  the  result  of 
a  very  gradual  development  of  the  earlier  foreign  sacred  speech 
of  the  priests,  that  it  is  really  not  surprising  to  find  the  theoiy 
that  Sumerian  was  merely  a  Semitic  cryptography  set  forth  and 
vigorously  upheld  by  so  eminent  a  scholar  as  Professor  Halevy 
(MSL.,  pp.  VIII,  IX). 

The  study  of  the  more  ancient  Non-Semitic  texts ,  more  par- 
ticularly of  the  Sumerian  unilingual  hymns ,  cannot  fail  to  shed 
additional  light  on  the  nature  of  this  peculiar  idiom,  besides  fur- 
nishing a  valuable  addition  to  the  study  of  the  Babylonian  reli- 
gious system. 

The  texts  of  the  hymns  in  Vol.  XV.  of  the  Brit.  Mus.  Cun. 
Texts  are  not  always  in  good  condition  and  present  many  diffi- 
culties, a  solution  of  some  of  which,  it  is  hoped,  has  been  suggested 
in  this  work  with  at  least  approximate  correctness. 

John  Dyneley  Prince 

Columbia  University 
October  1st,  1907 


To  the 

Rev.  Edward  Judson,  D.  D., 

in  recognition  of  his  friendship  to  the  author 
and  of  his  interest  in  Oriental  studies 


Preface 

Vol.  XV.  of  the  "Cuneiform  Texts  from  Babylonian  Tablets  in 
the  British  Museum,  printed  by  order  of  the  Trustees",  was  pub- 
lished in  1902.  Plates  7 — 30  of  this  valuable  volume  contain 
hymns  addressed  to  Bel,  Nergal,  Adad,  Sin,  Tammuz,  Bau  and  Nin- 
girgilu.  Of  these,  besides  the  translations  given  in  the  present 
work,  the  following  have  been  translated  and  commented  on;  viz., 
J.  Dyneley  Prince,  Jour.  Amer.  Or.  Soc,  xxviii,  pp.  168 — 182,  a 
hymn  to  Nergal  (PI.  14);  and  a  hymn  to  Sin  (also  rendered  and 
explained  in  this  thesis)  by  E.  Guthrie  Perry,  in  Hymnen  und  Ge- 
bete  an  Sin  (PI.  17).  In  press  at  present  are  also  translations  by 
J.  D.  Prince,  a  hymn  to  Bau,  Vol.  XV.  PI.  22  in  the  Harper  Me- 
morial Volume  (Chicago);  and,  by  the  same  author,  a  hymn  to 
Ningirgilu,  Vol.  XV.  PI.  23,  in  tbo  Paul  Haupt  Collection  to  appear 
in  1908. 

All  these  hymns  in  Plates  7 — 30  stand  by  themselves  as  distinct 
from  anything  hitherto  published.  They  are  unilingual,  a  fact  in- 
dicating that  they  are  very  ancient  and  furthermore  adding  mate- 
rially to  the  difficulty  of  their  translation.  This  Thesis  ventures 
a  transliteration,  translation  and  commentary  of  four  of  the  hymns 
which  are  peculiarly  difficult  owing  to  their  unilingual  Non-Semitic 
character.  Of  the  history  of  the  tablets  in  question,  which  are  all 
in  the  Old  Babylonian  character,  we  have  no  information.  They 
must  tell  their  own  story. 

The  writer  of  this  Thesis  wishes  to  acknowledge  with  much 
appreciation  the  aid  given  him  by  Dr.  John  Dyneley  Prince,  Professor 
of  Semitic  Languages  in  Columbia  University,  in  the  preparation  of 
this  work. 

New  York,  Oct,  1st,  1907 

F.  A.  Vanderburgh 


List  of  Abbreviations 

AL:  Assyrische  Lesestiicke,   von  Friedrich  Delitzsch.     Vierte  durch- 
aus  neu  bearbeitete  Auflage. 
ASK:  Akkadische  und  Sumerische  Keilschrifttexte ,   von  Paul  Haupt. 
BN:  Das  Babylonische  Nimrodepos,  von  Paul  Haupt. 
Br:  A  Classified  List  of  Cuneiform  Ideograms,  Compiled  by  Rudolph 
E.  Briinnow. 
CDAL.:  A  Concise  Dictionary  of  the  Assyrian  Language,   by  William 
Muss-Arnolt. 
CH:  The  Code  of  Hammurabi,  King  of  Babylon,  by  Robert  Francis 

Harper. 
Cler:  Collection  de  Clercq.  Catalogue.     Antiquite's  Assyriennes. 
CT :  Cuneiform  Texts  from  Babylonian  Tablets  in  the  British  Museum. 
D^c:  De'couvertes  en  Chaldee,  par  Ernest  de  Sarzec. 
EBH:  Early  Babylonian  History,  by  Hugo  Radau. 
EBL:  Explorations  in  Bible  Lands  during  the  19th  Century,  by  H.  V. 

Hilprecht. 
HBA :  A  History  of  Babylonia  and  Assyria,  by  R.  W.  Rogers. 
HW :  Assyrisches  Handworterbuch,  von  Friedrich  Delitzsch. 
IG:  The  Great  Cylinder  Inscriptions  A  and  B   of  Gudea,  by  Ira 

Maurice  Price. 
JA:  Journal  Asiatique. 
JRAS:  The  Journal  of  the  Royal  Asiatic  Society. 
MSL:  Materials  for  a  Sumerian  Lexicon,  by  John  Dyneley  Prince. 
N:  Nippur,  or  Explorations  and  Adventures  on  the  Euphrates,  by 
John  Punnett  Peters. 
OBI :  Old  Babylonian  Inscriptions,  chiefly  from  Nippur.    By  H.  V.  Hil- 
precht. 
OBTR:  Old  Babylonian  Temple  Records,  by  Robert  Julius  Lau. 

R :  Cuneiform  Inscriptions  of  Western  Asia,  prepared  by  Sir  Henry 
Rawlinson. 
RAAO:  Revue  d'Assyriologie  et  d'Archeologie  Orientale. 
RBA:  Die  Religion  Babyloniens  und  Assyriens,  von  Morris  Jastrow,  Jr. 


—     XII     — 

RSA:  Recueil    de    Signes  Archaiques    de    l'Ecriture  Cun&forme,   par 

V.  Scheil. 
SSD:  Les  Signes  SumeVieus  derives,  par  Paul  Toscaune. 
SSO:  A  Sketch  of  Semitic  Origins,  by  George  Aaron  Barton. 
SVA:  Die   Sumerischeu   Verbal-Afformative    nach    den    iiltesten  Keil- 
in8cbriften,  von  Vincent  Brummer. 
TC:  Tableau   Compare    des   Ecritures   Babylonienne   et   Assyrienne 
Archaiques  et  Modernes,  par  A.  Amiaud  et  L.  Mechineau. 
TEA:  Der  Tontafelfund   von  El   Amarna,   herausgegeben    von   Hugo 
Winckler. 
TR:  Travels   and    Researches   in   Chaldaea    and   Susiana,    by   Wm. 
K.  Loftus. 


Table  of  Contents 

Page 
Introduction 1 

Chapter  I 21 

Transliteration,  Translation  and  Commentary,  Hymn  to  Bel 
Chapter  II 42 

Transliteration,  Translation  and  Commentary,  Hymn  to  Sin 
Chapter  HI 55 

Transliteration,  Translation  and  Commentary,  Hymn  to  Adad 
Chapter  IV 70 

Transliteration,  Translation  and  Commentary,  Hymn  to  Tammuz 
Glossary 81 


Introduction 

The  gods  honored  in  the  hymns  treated  in  the  following  Thesis 
are  Bel,  Sin  (Nannar),  Adad  (Ramman)  and  Tammuz,  all  deities  of 
the  old  Babylonian  pantheon,  representing  different  phases  of  per- 
sonality and  force,  conceived  of  as  incorporated  in  nature  and  as 
affecting  the  destinies  of  men.  These  gods  are  severally  designated 
in  the  hymns  as  follows: 

in  Tablet  13963,  Rev.    1,  '0  Bel  of  the  mountains;" 

in  Tablet  13930,  Obv.    2,  "0  father  Nannar;" 

in  Tablet  29631,  Obv.  10,  "0  Ramman,  king  of  heaven";  and 

in  Tablet  29628,  Obv.    3,  "The  lord  Tammuz"  (CT.  XV,  10, 
15,  16,  17  and  19). 

The  attributes  and  deeds  belonging  to  these  divinities  are 
adduced  from  a  wide  range  of  literature,  beginning  with  the  royal 
inscriptions  of  the  pre-dynastic  periods  and  ending  with  the  in- 
scriptions of  the  monarchs  of  the  later  Babylonian  empire.  In  fact, 
the  building  inscriptions  of  the  Babylonians,  the  war  inscriptions 
of  the  Assyrians,  the  legendary  literature,  the  incantations,  as  well 
as  the  religious  collections,  particularly  the  hymns,  afford  us  many 
descriptions,  of  greater  or  less  length,  of  all  the  Babylonian  gods. 

To  aid  the  student  in  understanding  better  the  character  of 
the  four  gods  whose  hymns  have  been  translated  in  the  following 
Thesis,  I  here  give  a  brief  descriptive  sketch  of  each  of  the  deities 
whose  praises  were  sung  in  the  documents  which  I  have  chosen 
to  render. 

1.  Bel 

Bel  was  the  most  ancient  of  all  Babylonian  gods  and  was  a 
popular  deity  through  the  historic  rise  and  fall  of  several  Babylonian 
states,  when  no  other  god  received  prominent  recognition.  When 
En-isag-kusanna,  lord  of  Kengi,  subdued  the  city  of  Kis  in  the  north 
of  Babylonia,  he  brought  the  spoil  of  his  victory  to  Bel.  "To  Bel 
{En-lit),  king  of  the  lands,  En-&ag-kusanna,  lord  of  Kgngi,  the  spoil 

1 


—    2    — 

of  Kis,  wicked  of  heart,  he  presented."1  Urukagina,  king  of  Lagas, 
built  a  temple  to  Ningirsu,  the  god  of  Girsu,  but  he,  in  honoring 
Ningirsu  as  the  hero  of  Bel,  was  really  honoring  Bel.  Tor  Nin- 
girsu, the  hero  of  Bel,  Urukagina,  king  of  Sirpurla,  his  house 
he  built."2  Eannatura ,  who  was  patesi  of  Lagas  and  made  him- 
self king  of  Kis\  calls  himself  the  chosen  of  Bel,  as  follows :  "Ean- 
natum ,  patesi  of  Sirpurla,  chosen  of  Bel."3  Entemena,  who  is 
called  in  the  Vase  of  Silver,  "son  of  Enanatum",4  and  who  probably 
was  the  nephew  of  Eannatum,  introduces  his  fine  Cone  Inscription 
with  these  words:  "Bel,  king  of  the  lands,  father  of  the  gods."5 
He  also  claims  in  the  same  inscription  to  derive  the  right  to  reign 
from  Bel:  "Entemena,  patesi  of  Sirpurla,  to  whom  a  sceptre  is 
given  by  Bel."0  Entemena's  Cone  also  gives  us  information  about 
Mesilim.  It  speaks  of  Mesilim  as  "king  of  Kis."7  In  describing  the 
victory  of  Mesilim  over  the  Gisbanites,  a  people  located  apparently 
not  very  far  from  Kis ,  Entemena  tells  us  that  the  victory  was 
effected  by  the  command  of  Bel.  "Upon  the  command  of  Bel  a 
scourge  he  (Mesilim)  brought  over  them  (the  Gisbanites);  the  dead 
in  a  field  of  the  land  he  buried."8  For  map  showing  supposed 
location  of  Gisban,  see  SSO.  p.  158.  Lugalzaggisi,  a  usurper  from 
the  north,  making  himself  master  of  the  world  in  all  directions 
and  setting  up  a  throne  at  Erech,  in  his  inscription  of  132  lines, 
freely  recognizes  the  favor  of  Bel.  "Bel,  king  of  the  lands,  to 
Lugalzaggisi,  king  of  Erech,  the  kingship  of  the  world  did  give."9 
In  this  period  preceding  Sargon  I.,  Samas  seems  to  have  a  distinct 
place  in  the  religious  world,  but  he  does  not  receive  the  attention 
that  Bel  receives.  He  is  particularly  mentioned  in  one  inscription; 
viz.,  in  the  Stele  des  Vautours,  where  he  is  spoken  of  as  "Samas,  the 
king  who  dispenses  splendour."1" 

i  dingir  En-lil  lugal  kur-kur-ra  En-Sag-ku§-an-na  enKi-en-gi  h<^(NI)- 
ga  KiS-ki  hul-Sag  a-mu-na-$ub  (OBI.  Nos.  90  and  92). 

2  dingir  Nin-gir-su  gud  dingir  En-lil-hi-ra  Uru-ka-gi-na  lugal  Sir- 
la-pur-ki-ge  e-ni  mu-na-ru  (Clercq  II,  PI.  viii,  Col.  I). 

3  E-an-na-tum  pa-te-si  Sir-la-ki-pur-ge  mu-pad-da  dingir  En-lil-ge 
(Galet  A,  Col.  I.    See  Ddc.  XL1II). 

*  En-teme-na  dumu  En-an-na-tum  (Lines  3  and  10.  See  Die.  XL VII). 

t>  dingir  En-lil  lugal  kur-kur-ra  ab-ba  dingir-dingir-ru-ne-ge  (Cone 
of  Entemena,  Col.  I,  1—3.  vSee  Dec.  XLVH). 

8  En-teme-na  pa-te-si  Sir-la-pur-ki  pa  sum-ma  dingir  En-lil-lcl  (Cone 
of  Entemena,  Col.  V,  19—23.    See  Dec.  XLVII). 

7  Mesilim  lugal  Kl&M-ge  (Cone  of  Entemena,  Col.  I,  8 — 9.  See 
Die.  XLVII). 

8  ka  dingir  En-lil-ld-ta  sa-u-gal  ne-u  rtui(SA\i)-dul-tak-bi  edin-na  ki- 
ba  ni-uS-uS  (Cone  of  Entemena,  Col.  1, 28— 31.  See  RAAO.  Vol.IV,  Plate  II). 

»  dinyir  En-lil  lugal  kur-kur-ra  Lugal-zag-gi-si  lugal  Unug-ki-ga  nam- 
lugal  kalam-ma  e-na-sum-ma-a  (OBI.  No.  87,  Col.  I,  1 — 4  and  39 — 41). 

io  dingir  Babbar  lugal  zal  sig-ga-ka  (see  De"c.  XXXVIII,  Fragment 
D1,  middle  of  the  Fragment). 


The  date  of  these  early  Babylonian  rulers,  of  course,  is,  as 
yet,  not  accurately  determined.  The  relative  age  of  each  is  made 
out  chiefly  from  palaeographic  evidences  (see  EBH.  p.  8,  for  example), 
supplemented  with  the  attempt  at  fitting  into  one  harmonious  whole 
the  events  which  the  inscriptions  of  these  rulerS  divulge.  Then 
the  whole  schedule  is  crowded  backward  or  forward  or  internally 
changed  from  time  to  time  as  new  evidence  is  gathered  for  or 
against  the  testimony  of  Nabonidus  (555 — 538  B.  C.)  who,  when 
he  discovered  the  tablet  of  Naram-Sin,  declared  that  he  was  gazing 
on  that  which  no  eyes  had  beheld  for  thirty-two  hundred  years. 
Nabonidus  says.  "I  dug  to  a  depth  of  eighteen  cubits,  and  the 
foundation  of  Naram-Sin ,  the  son  of  Sargon,  which  for  thirty-two 
hundred  years  no  king  that  had  preceded  me  had  discovered, 
Samas,  the  great  Lord  of  E-barra,  permitted  me,  even  me,  to  be- 
hold."1 On  the  supposed  relation  of  these  kings  to  Naram-Sin, 
the  rulers  En-sag-kusanna,  a  king  of  the  south,  Urukagina,  of  Lagas, 
and  Mesilim,  a  king  ruling  at  Kis,  are  placed  along  about  the  date 
of  4500  B.  C,  while  Eannatum,  Enannatum  and  Entemena,  successive 
rulers  at  Lagas ,  are  placed  near  the  date  of  4200  B.  C.  Lugal- 
zaggisi  of  Erech  is  placed  at  4000  B.  C.  It  may  be  stated  here 
that  the  date  of  Sargon  I.  as  3800  B.  C.  is  obtained  by  adding 
to  3200  the  date  of  the  reign  of  Nabonidus  as  550  years  B.  C.  and 
also  the  length  of  the  reign  of  Sargon  I.  as  50  years. 

The  seat  of  Bel's  cult  was  Nippur,  a  city  lying  between  the 
Euphrates  and  Tigris,  a  little  below  Babylon,  and  located,  as  it 
were,  in  the  midway  favorable  to  receiving  homage  from  kings  of 
either  the  north  or  the  south  of  Babylonia.  We  find  it  mentioned 
as  early  as  the  time  of  Entemena,  who  in  one  of  his  inscriptions, 
in  speaking  of  something  presented  to  Bel,  says:  "To  Bel  of  Nippur 
by  Entemena  it  was  presented".'2  In  the  bilingual  legend  of  the 
Creation,  Nippur  seems  to  be  regarded  as  a  very  old  city.  It  is 
placed  at  the  head  of  the  list  of  three  that  are  mentioned  as  an- 
cient cities  of  Babylonia.  "Nippur  was  not  made;  E-kur  was 
not  built.  Erech  was  not  made;  E-anna  was  not  built.  The  abyss 
was  not  made;  Eridu  was  not  built."3  Nippur  evidently  is  older 
than  the  worship  of  Bel  and  the  conception  of  Bel  is  older  than 
the  first  king  of  whom  we  have  mention;  viz.,  En-sag-kusanna, 
who  is  placed  at  4500  B.  C. 


1  (56  b)  XVJII  amat  ga-ga-ri  (57)  u-Sap-pi-il-ma  te-me-en-na  Na-rdm- 
tf"  Siw(E§)  mar  Sar-ukin  (58)  Jsd  III  M  II  C  Satiate  ma-na-ma  sarru  a-lik 
mah-ri-ia  la  i-mu-ru  (59)  **  SamaS  belu  rabu-u  E-bar-ra  (60)  u-kal-lim- 
an-ni  ia-a-Si  (V  R.  64,  Col.  II). 

>  dingir  Eri-lil-li  En-lil-ki-ta  En-te-me-na-ra  mu-na-Sub  (OBI.  No.  116). 

3  En-lil-ki  nu-du  E-kur-ra  nu-dim  Unug-M  nu-du  E-an-na  nu-dim 
zu-ab  nu-du  JSfun-ki  nu-dim  (CT.  XIII,  Tablet  82—5—22,  1048.  Plate  35, 
lines  6,  7  and  8). 

1* 


—    4     — 

At  Nippur  was  located  Bel's  great  temple  which  was  commonly 
called  E-kur,  house  of  tbe  mountain,  a  name  particularly  descriptive 
of  the  shrine  of  Bel  resting  on  the  top  of  the  mountain-like  zig- 
gurrat.  Sargon  I.  calls  himself  the  builder  of  Bel's  temple  at 
Nippur,  and  Naram-Sin,  the  son  of  Sargon,  also  calls  himself  the 
builder  of  Bel's  temple.  Sargon's  language,  which  we  take  from 
a  door-socket  found  at  Nippur,  is:  "Sargani-sar-ali,  son  of  Itti-Bel, 
the  mighty  king  of  Agade,  builder  of  E-kur,  temple  of  Bel  in 
Nippur".1  The  language  of  Naram-Sin  from  a  brick  stamp  found 
at  Nippur  is :  "Naram-Sin,  builder  of  the  temple  of  Bel".2  Neither 
Sargou  nor  his  son  meant  that  he  was  the  original  builder  of  E-kur. 
They  were  simply  repairers  of  the  temple,  like  many  other  kings. 
Many  kings  down  to  the  last  king  of  the  last  empire  took  much 
pride  in  rebuilding  temples.  There  must  have  been  a  temple  at 
Nippur  when  En-sag-kusanna  presented  the  spoil  of  Kis  to  Bel. 
Excavations  at  Nippur  show  that,  as  there  are  great  deposits  of 
debris  above  the  temple  pavements  made  by  Sargon  and  his  son, 
so  beneath  these  pavements  there  is  a  further  great  layer  of  debris, 
proving  that  the  founding  of  E-kur  must  reach  far  back  into  the 
darkness  of  pre-historic  antiquity.  Sargon's  bricks  were  the  first 
to  bear  a  stamp  which  we  may  consider  to  imply  a  date,  but  they 
were  not  the  first  bricks  laid. 

The  ziggurrat  which  Ur-Gur,  an  early  king  of  Ur,  built  is  the 
first  of  which  we  have  definite  knowledge.  We  know  something 
of  the  pavement  that  Sargon  I.  and  Naram-Sin  built,  but  of  the 
character  of  the  buildings  that  might  have  rested  on  this  pavement 
we  have  no  information.  Ur-Gur  leveled  the  ground  and  built  a 
new  platform,  8  feet  high  and  100  by  170  feet  in  area  with  a 
ziggwrat  consisting  of  three  stages.  Some  of  the  facings  of  his 
structure  were  made  of  burnt  brick,  bearing  the  inscription  of 
Ur-Gur  (see  N.  II,  124).  The  greatest  temple  Nippur  ever  had 
was  built  by  an  Assyrian  king;  viz.,  Asurbanipal.  The  structure 
covered  a  larger  surface  than  any  before  it.  The  walls,  instead  of 
being  plain,  were  ornamented  with  square  half  columns.  The  lower 
terrace  was  faced  with  baked  brick,  stamped  with  an  inscription 
in  which  the  ziggurrat  is  dedicated  to  Bel,  the  lord  of  the  lands, 
by  Asurbanipal,  the  mighty  king,  the  king  of  the  four  quarters  of 
the  earth,  the  builder  of  E-kur  (see  N.  II,  126). 

E-kur,  the  temple  of  Bel  at  Nippur,  as  restored  on  the  basis 
of  the  discoveries  of  the  University  of  Pennsylvania  Exploration 
Fund,  consists  of  two  courts,  an  outer  and  an  inner  court.    Within 


1  #"  Sar-qa-ni-sar-dli  mar  Itti-Hu  Bel  da-num  Sar  A-ga-de-ki  ban 
Kkur  bit  Bel  in  Nippur-ki    OBI.  No.  2). 

*  ilu  Narum-Un  6'j'h  bdni  bit  U"  Bel  (OBI.  4). 


—    5    — 

the  inner  court  stands  the  ziggurrat,  rising  to  a  tower  of  three 
or  four  stages  which  the  most  devout  pilgrims  might  perhaps  ascend. 
At  the  top  is  an  enclosed  shrine  in  which  is  a  statue  of  Bel.  Here 
Bel  and  his  consort,  Belit,  for  Babylonian  gods  maintain  family 
relations  like  human  beings,  are  supposed  to  dwell.  In  figurines 
Bel  appears  as  an  old  man,  dressed  in  royal  robes,  generally  car- 
rying a  thunder-bolt  in  his  hand  (see  N.  II,  128).  By  the  side  of 
the  ziggurrat  stands  a  temple  for  the  use  of  the  priests.  We  may 
assume  on  the  whole,  no  doubt,  that  the  assembly  of  pilgrims 
was  confined  chiefly  to  the  outer  court  (see  EBL.  470). 

Bel  was  at  first  a  local  deity,  but  as  the  circumference  of 
the  political  territory  of  which  Nippur  was  the  religious  centre 
was  enlarged,  so  Bel's  cult  was  extended.  Other  cities  included 
in  the  same  political  domain  with  Nippur,  recognized  Bel  as  lord. 
Bel  was  a  sort  of  war  god.  Kings  rivaled  one  another  in  courting 
his  favor.  The  victorious  king  attributed  his  success  to  Bel  and 
brought  the  spoil  to  Bel.  The  king  of  the  south,  whether  of  Lagas, 
Erech  or  Ur,  and  the  king  of  the  north,  whether  of  Kis  or  Agade, 
always  went  to  Nippur  to  celebrate  his  victory.  In  this  way  Bels 
lordship  came  to  be  recognized  as  extending  over  all  Babylonia 
and  finally  over  Assyria.  Hammurabi,  king  at  Babylon,  2300  B.  C, 
recognized  "Bel  as  lord  of  heaven  and  earth,  who  determines  the 
destiny  of  the  land",1  and  Tiglath-pileser  I.  (about  1100  B.  C), 
the  first  great  Assyrian  conqueror,  called  Bel  "the  father  of  the 
gods  and  Bel  of  the  lands",2  and  speaks  of  himself  as  "appointed  to 
dominion  over  the  country  of  Bel".3 

The  Semitic  appropriation  of  En-lil  involved  some  transforma- 
tion in  the  conception  of  Bel.  Not  to  refer  to  Palestine,  there 
were  three  Bels;  the  Sumerian  Bel,  the  Semitic  Bel  and  the  new 
Bel  or  Marduk,  who,  however,  was  really  a  different  god.  The 
Babylonian  Bel,  either  in  the  mind  of  the  Sumerian,  of  the  Babylonian 
or  of  the  Assyrian,  always  had  his  seat  at  Nippur. 

Under  Semitic  influence  Bel  became  lord  of  the  world.  He 
was  one  in  the  hierarchy  of  three  who  ruled  the  universe;  viz., 
Anu,  the  lord  of  the  heavens,  Bel,  the  lord  of  the  earth,  and  Ea, 
the  lord  of  the  deep.  The  Sumerian  name,  En-lil,  made  Bel  the 
'lord  of  fulness".  The  Semitic  name  Bel  emphasized  the  fact  of  his 
lordship,  and  the  name  of  his  temple,  E-kur,  "house  of  the  mountain", 
marked   out   the    scope  of  his  lordship.     The  earth  was  conceived 


1  ttu  Bel  (EN.LIL)  be- el  Sd-me-e  it  ir-si-tim  Sd-i-im  Si-ma- at  mdtim 
(KALAM)  (Col.  I,  3—7.    See  CH.  Plate  I). 

9  #w  Bel  (EN.LIL)  a-bu  Hani  XuBel  (EN)  mdtdte  (KUR.KUR)  (I  R.  9, 
Col.  I,  3—4). 

3  (21b)  a-na  Sarru-ut  (22)  mat  »*"  Belt  (EN.LIL)  rabi-eS  tu-kin-na- 
M  (I  R.  9,  Col.  I). 


—     6     — 

of  as  a  mountain  vesting  on  the  abyss ,  and  the  temple  with  its 
zigyurrat  was  built  to  rise  up  like  a  mountain  out  of  the  deep. 
The  people  could  stand  in  the  court  of  the  temple  at  Nippur  and 
say  of  the  mountain-like  structure: 

uO  great  mountain  of  Bel,  0  airy  mountain, 

Whose  summit  reaches  heaven, 

Whose  foundation  in  the  shining  deep  is  firmly  laid, 

On  the  land  like  a  mighty  bull  lying, 

With  gleaming  horns  like  the  rays  of  the  rising  sun, 

Like  the  stars  of  heaven  that  are  filled  with  lustre!"1 

When  Babylon  became  the  chief  city  of  all  Babylonia,  it  was 
natural  that  its  god  should  be  regarded  as  supreme.  It  was  at 
this  point  that  political  lordship  seemed  to  pass  from  the  old  Bel 
to  the  new,  namely  to  Marduk.  Hammurabi,  one  of  the  early 
kings  at  Babylon,  speaks  of  Bel  as  voluntarily  transferring  his 
power  to  Marduk.  In  the  Assyrian  legend  of  the  Creation  this 
transfer  is  dramatically  enacted.  The  task  of  overcoming  the  monster 
Tiamat  naturally  belonged  to  Bel.  But  Marduk,  the  youthful  god 
of  Eridu,  the  son  of  Ea,  was  urged  to  attempt  the  feat.  When 
he  had  slain  the  monster,  there  was  joy  among  the  gods.  They 
vied  with  each  other  in  bestowing  honor  on  the  victor.  Finally 
Bel  steps  forward  and  confers  an  honor  also.  He  bestowed  on 
Marduk  his  own  title  with  these  words:  "Father  Bel  calls  Marduk 
the  lord  of  the  world."2  Marduk,  therefore,  is  sometimes  called 
the  new  Bel  in  distinction  from  En-lil,  the  old  Bel. 

The  idea  of  origins  is  apparently  not  very  fully  elaborated  in 
Babylonian  literature.  For  instance,  the  Babylonians  did  not  come 
so  near  to  the  idea  of  creation  ex  nihilo  as  the  Hebrews.  Their 
cosmogony  starts  with  chaos.  The  expanse  of  the  heavens  appears 
specked  with  stars,  some  of  which  move  with  regularity.  The  moon 
travels  across  the  expanse  according  to  a  prescribed  order.  Then 
the  Babylonian  bilingual  account  of  the  Creation  gives  a  short  state- 
ment of  the  creation  of  the  land  and  sea,  of  man  and  beast. 
Generally,  however,  the  divinity  that  planned  and  perfected  order 
seems    to   be  far  in  the  background.     The  bilingual  account  says: 

"Marduk  constructed  an  enclosure  before  the  waters, 
He  made  dust  and  heaped  it  up  within  the  enclosure. 


1  (15)  Icur-gal  dtngtr  En-lil-hi  im-har-sag  gi'i-bi  an  da-ab-di-a  zu-ab 
azag-ga-bi  (16)  sufy-bi  uS-uS-c  apin-apin-e  (19)  Lur-kur-ra  ama  ban-da 
ba-da  nu-a-dim  (21)  siSe-ir-zi  si  dingir  Babbar  vvtl-mul-la-dim  (23)  mul  au- 
na  dil-bad-d,,  isi-ii  laX-a-dim  (K.  4898.    IV  R.  27,  No.  2). 

■  be-el  m&t&te  KUR.KUR)  Sum^MUVfci  it-tabia-biU'*  Bel  (ES.hlL) 
(K.  8522.    Rev.  13.    CT.  XIII.    Plate  27). 


—     7     — 

Mankind  he  created. 

Animals  of  the  field,  creatures  of  the  field  he  created. 
The  Tigris  and  the  Euphrates  he  made  and  in  place  put  (them) 
By  their  names  joyfully  he  called  them".1 

Now  Marduk,  we  know,  took  the  place  of  Bel  and  Bel  handed 
over  his  prerogatives  to  Marduk.  In  transferring  his  rights  he 
must  have  given  over  also  his  power  to  create.  If  Marduk  pos- 
sessed the  power  to  create  in  the  time  of  his  popularity,  Bel  must 
have  had  the  same  power  in  the  days  of  his  glory,  before  he  was 
succeeded  by  Marduk.  Therefore  we  are  led  to  the  belief  that 
the  early  Babylonians  looked  upon  Bel  as  the  creator  of  animal 
and  human  life  on  earth. 

The  following  hymn  may  be  regarded  as  embodying  a  legendary 
view  of  Bel  as  creator,  while  the  idea  of  destruction  is  also  in- 
corporated in  the  hymn: 

"Of  Bel,  mighty  hand, 

Who  lifts  up  glory  and  splendour,  day  of  power. 

Fearfulness  he  establishes. 

Lord  of  DUN.PA.UD.DU.A,  mighty  hand. 

Fearfulness  he  establishes. 

Stormy  one,  father,  mother,  creator,  mighty  hand. 

The  catch-net  he  throws  over  the  hostile  land. 

Lord,  great  warrior,  mighty  hand. 

A  firm  house  he  raises  up;  the  enemy  he  overthrows. 

The  shining  one,  lord  of  Nippur,  mighty  hand. 

The  lord,  the  life  of  the  land,  the  massu  of  heaven  and  earth."'2 

2.  Sin 

Next  after  Bel,  the  moon-god  is  worthy  of  consideration,  be- 
cause of  the  age  of  his  cult,  and  because  of  the  greatness  of  its 
influence   in  Babylonia.     The   moon -god  had  two  Sumerian  names, 


1  (17)  .  .  .  gi-si-ma  gi-dir  i-de-na-a  nam-mi-ni-in-kesda  #"  Marduk 
a-ma-am  ina  pa-an  me-e  ir-ku-us  (18)  sahar-ra  ni-mu-a  ki  a-dag  nam-mi- 
in-dub  e-pi-ri  ib-ni-ma  it-ti  a-mi  iS-pu-uk  (20)  nam-lii-giSgal-lu  ba-ru 
a-me-lu-ti  ib-ta-ni  (22)  bir-anSu  nig-zi-gal  edin-na  ba-ru  bu-ul  seri  si- 
kin  na-piS-ti  ina  si-e-ri  ib-ta-ni  (23)  id  Idigna  id  Puranunu  me-dim  ki 
gar-ra-dim  Diglat  ii  Puratta  ib-ni-ma  ina  as-ri  is-ku-un  (24)  mu-ne-ne-a 
nam-duga  mi-ni-in-sd-a  sum-si-na  fa-biS  im-bi  (Tablet  82—5 — 22,  1048. 
CT.  XIII.    Plate  36). 

a  (47)  dimmer  Mu-ul-lil-ld-ra  id-kal  (48)  su-zi  me-lam  gur-ru  ud  al- 
tar (49)  im-hus  ri-a-bi  (52)  u  dimmer  DUN.PA.UD.DU.A-ra  id-kal  (53)  nam- 
tar  gu-la  im-huS  ri-a-bi  (56)  mu-lu  Til  a-a  damal  muh-na  id-kal  (58)  sa- 
Su-us-gal  ki  bal-a  su-su  (60)  u  ur-sag  gal-e  id-kal  (61)  e  gi  gur-ru  mulu 
erim-ma  Su-Su  (62)  azag  gasan  En-lil-ki-a-ra  id-kal  (63)  am  si  ka-nag-ga 
mai-su  ki-in-gi-ra  (K.  4980.    IV  R.  27,  No.  4). 


—    8    — 

two  Assyrian  names  and  two  great  temples.  The  Sumerian  name 
most  often  applied  to  the  moon-god  is  Sis-ki,  the  particular  meaning 
of  which  in  this  case  does  not  seem  to  be  very  patent.  If  the 
two  syllables  Si's  and  hi  are  taken  as  nouns,  the  one  is  the  con- 
struct state  and  the  other  in  the  genitive  relation,  the  name  means 
"brother  of  the  land",  that  is,  "protector  of  the  land",  or  "helper 
of  the  land".  The  other  Sumerian  name  is  En-zu,  lord  of  wisdom, 
the  intellectual  attribute  of  wisdom  being  closely  related  to  the 
physical  property  of  giving  light.  While  therefore  Sis-ki  expresses 
the  material  relation  of  the  moon  to  the  earth,  En-zu  seems  to 
state  the  intellectual  relation  of  the  moon-god  to  the  affairs  of  the 
earth.  The  first  Assyrian  name  of  the  moon-god  to  be  considered 
is  Nannar.  The  derivation  of  this  name  is  still  in  doubt.  It 
generally  occurs  in  bilingual  literature  as  the  Assyrian  equivalent 
of  the  Sumerian  Sis-ki  (see  IV  R.  9,  3 — 18).  Jastrow  thinks  that 
the  word  Nannar  is  made  by  the  reduplication  of  nar,  "light",  and 
the  assimilation  of  the  first  r,  Nar  -j-  nar  =  Nannar  (see  RBA.  p.  72). 
The  other  Assyrian  name,  connected  with  the  moon-god  more  often 
at  Harran  than  at  Ur,  is  Sin,  the  sign  being  ES,  used  also  for 
"thirty",  and  is  applied  to  the  moon-god  as  the  deity  of  the  month 
of  thirty  days.  As  the  cult  of  the  moon-god  traveled  from  Ur  to 
Harran,  so  the  name  of  Sin  traveled  even  into  the  peninsula  of 
Arabia  and  probably  became  a  local  name  there  in  the  wilderness. 
The  Assyrian  kings  of  the  second  empire  seemed  to  prefer  to  call 
the  moon-god  by  the  name  Sin,  but  the  Semitic  Babylonians  called 
him  Nannar. 

Nannar  had  a  temple  at  Ur,  called  E-gis§irgal,  and  one  at 
Harran,  known  as  E-hulhul.  Ur  was  the  oldest  of  the  two  temple 
cities.  Its  history  may  possibly  reach  back  to  4000  B.  C.  Ur 
held  a  position  in  southern  Babylonia  similar  to  that  held  by  Nip- 
pur in  northern  Babylonia,  but  was  not  so  old  as  Nippur.  Ur 
was  the  religious  centre  in  the  south  with  Nannar  as  the  state  god, 
as  Nippur  was  the  religious  centre  in  the  north  with  Bel  as  the  state 
god.  When  the  states  of  the  south  and  the  north  were  united  under 
Hammurabi,  Babylon,  becoming  the  religious  capital  of  the  south 
and  the  north  combined,  the  state  lustre  of  the  god  of  Babylon 
naturally  came  to  dim  the  glory  of  the  god  of  Ur  as  well  as  that 
of  Nippur.  Harran,  situated  on  the  Euphrates  in  the  northern  part 
of  Assyria,  never  figured  in  state  power,  and  was  prominent  only 
because  of  the  importance  of  the  events  that  centered  there,  on 
the  road  between  the  east  and  the  west. 

Nabonidus,  the  last  Semitic  Babylonian  king  (555 — 538  B.  C.) 
was  an  enthusiastic  devotee  of  the  moon-god.  He  tells  us  what 
Asurbanipal  did  to  the  temple  of  the  moon-god  at  Mugheir.  In 
speaking  of  that  temple,  he  calls  it  the  house  of  Sin  which  Asur- 


—    9    — 

banipal,  king  of  Assyria,  son  of  Esarhaddon,  king  of  Assyria  had 
built.  Nabonidus  himself  rebuilt  both  the  temples  of  the  moon- 
god,  the  temple  of  E-gissirgal  at  Ur  and  the  temple  of  E-hulhul 
at  Harran,  and  he  gives  us  a  description  of  the  rebuilding  of 
both.  We  also  have  two  prayers  of  Nabonidus  addressed  to  the 
moon-god,  one  addressed  to  him  at  E-gisslrgal,  the  other  ad- 
dressed to  him  at  E-hulhul  (see  I  R.  68,  Col.  I,  6  ft.  and  V  R.  64, 
Col.  I,  8ff.). 

The  temple  ruins  of  E-gissirgal  have  been  well  uncovered. 
The  temple  is  of  rectangular  form,  the  four  corners  turned  towards 
the  four  cardinal  points  of  the  compass.  The  platform  of  the  base 
is  at  the  level  of  the  roofs  of  the  houses,  made  of  solid  masonry 
of  bricks  and  reached  by  steps  at  the  end.  On  the  platform  are 
two  stagings,  also  of  solid  masonry  reached  by  steps  at  one  end. 
On  the  second  staging  is  a  shrine  of  the  moon-god.  In  sculpture 
he  appears  as  an  old  man  with  long  beard  and  dressed  in  royal 
robes.  He  wears  a  hat  and  in  the  scene  there  is  always  a  thin 
crescent  (see  Clercq,  Vol.  I,  Plates  X — XV).  Loftus  and  Taylor 
both  give  drawings  of  the  temple  of  E-gissirgal  (see  TR.  p.  127 
and  JRAS.  XV,  p.  260.)  The  ruins  of  the  temple  of  the  moon- 
god  at  Harran  have  not  yet  been  uncovered  to  the  extent  that 
the  plan  of  the  temple  can  be  laid  before  us. 

Theologically,  Nannar  stood  at  the  head  of  the  second  triad 
of  gods.  The  hierarchy  of  the  universe  consisted  of  the  god  Anu, 
the  god  Bel  and  the  god  Ea.  The  hierarchy  of  heaven  consisted 
of  the  god  Nannar,  the  god  Samas  and  the  god  Istar;  that  is,  the 
moon-god,  the  vsun-god  and  the  star-god.  The  reason  for  placing 
Nannar  above  Samas  was  that  Nannar  was  the  god  of  the  ruling 
city,  while  Samas  was  the  city  god  of  the  dependent  state,  though 
the  sun  which  Samas  represents  is  stronger  than  the  moon  which 
Nannar  represents,  and  we  should  expect  Samas,  therefore,  to  re- 
ceive the  first  place.  The  god  of  the  city  of  Larsa  was  Samas. 
The  god  of  the  city  of  Ur  was  Nannar.  When  Larsa  became  sub- 
ject to  Ur,  the  god  of  Larsa;  viz.,  Samas,  became  the  child  of  the 
god  of  Ur;  that  is,  of  Nannar.  The  relation  of  the  night  to  the 
calendar  also  shows  that  the  rank  of  Nannar  was  superior  to  that 
of  Samas.  The  day  began  at  evening ;  not  with  the  morning.  The 
sun  too  was  the  son  of  the  night ;  that  is ,  it  issued  forth  from 
the  night,  in  the  morning.  Kings,  thinking v of  this  fact,  that  the 
sun  was  born  of  the  night,  often  addressed  Samas  as  the  offspring 
of  the  god  Sin.  The  rising  of  the  moon  in  the  night  to  send  forth 
its  light  into  the  darkness  also  impressed  the  Babylonian  with  the 
power  of  the  moon.  The  waxing  and  waning  of  the  moon  left 
the  same  impression  on  the  Babylonian  mind.  The  regularity  of 
the  phases  of  the  moon  and  its  effect  upon  the  tides  as  well  showed 


—     10    — 

the  moon  to  be  an  agent  in  marking  time.  Finally,  the  place  of 
the  moon  among  the  stars  also  gave  him  the  appearance  of  having 
royal  sway. 

Nannar's  national  influence  was  much  like  that  of  Bel.  Geo- 
graphically, he  represented  southern  Babylonia,  while  Bel  was  the 
chief  deity  of  northern  Babylonia.  When  Marduk  became  the 
patron  god  of  Babylon,  Bel  and  Nannar  still  held  their  positions 
as  patron  gods,  but  in  subordination  to  Marduk.  Besides,  they 
did  not  lose  their  influence  as  supreme  deities,  each  in  his  pe- 
culiar sphere,  Bel  as  the  god  of  the  earth  and  Nannar  as  the 
god  of  the  moon.  Bel  was  ruler  of  the  earth  while  Nannar  was, 
by  his  light,  a  producer  in  the  earth.  Bel  was  the  providential 
director  of  life  on  earth,  Nannar  was  the  originator  of  life  on  earth, 
as  he  formed  the  child  in  the  womb.  Both  were  superhuman  in 
power  and  wisdom.  Thus  Hammurabi:  "My  words  are  mighty. 
If  a  man  pay  no  attention  to  my  words,  may  Bel,  the  lord  who 
determines  destinies,  whose  command  cannot  be  altered,  who  has 
enlarged  my  dominion,  drive  him  out  from  his  dwelling.  May  Sin, 
the  lord  of  heaven,  my  divine  creator,  whose  scimetar  shines  among 
the  gods,  take  away  from  him  the  crown  and  throne  of  sovereignty."1 

No  god  in  the  mind  of  the  Babylonian  had  reached  the  posi- 
tion of  combining  in  himself  all  the  qualities  of  divinity.  So  it 
did  not  seem  inconsistent  to  the  Babylonian  to  worship  two  gods 
like  Bel  and  Nannar,  or  more  gods.  There  was  a  tolerance  of  all 
gods;  each  was  considered  as  acting  in  his  own  circle,  and  these 
circles  did  not  necessarily  exclude  the  one  the  other.  One  god 
might  be  more  important  than  another,  according  to  the  import- 
ance of  the  circle  in  which  his  virtue  was  effective,  or  according 
to  the  importance  of  the  political  power  the  circle  of  whose  sway 
was  under  the  special  tutelage  of  some  particular  god.  Babylonian 
worship  cannot  be  said  to  be  polytheistic  in  the  grosser  form,  nor 
had  it  reached  the  higher  ideal  that  lies  in  monotheism.  It  may 
properly  be  considered  a  henotheistic  worship  in  which  there  is  a 
pantheon  of  gods  whose  local  and  universal  claims  did  not  cause 
the  gods  or  their  devotees  to  war  the  one  on  the  other. 

There  is  a  truly  great  bilingual  hymn  addressed  to  Nannar. 
According  to  the  colophon  it  was  transcribed  by  the  chief  penman 
of  Asurbanipal  from  an  old  copy.    My  impression  is  that  it  is  an 


1  (Col.  XLI,  99)  a-md(PI)-tu-v-a  na-aS-ga  (Col.  XLII,  18)  Sum-ma 
a-me(Pl)-lum  (19)  a-md(PI)-ti-ia  (22)  la  i-gul-ma  (53)  "«  Bel  (ES.1IL)  be- 
lum  (54)  mu-Si-im  Si-ma-tim  (55)  8a  ki-be(SE)-zu  (56)  la  ut-ta-ka-ru  (57)  mu- 
6ar-bu-u  (58)  iar-rii-ti-ia  (62)  i-na  M-ub-ti-Su  (63)  li-Sd-ab-bi-lui-aS-Sum 
(Col.  XLIII,  41)  iht  Si?i  (EN.ZU)  be-el  id-me-e  (42)  ilum(AX)  ba-ni-i 
(43)  Sd  Se-ri-zu  44)  Mia  i//(NI.NTi  M-pa-a-al  (45)  agdm  kussdm  w  Sar-ru- 
tim  (46)  li-te-ir-Su  (CH.  Plates  LXXVI,  LXXVII  and  LXXIX  . 


—  11  — 

enlargement  of  the  hymn  to  Nannar  of  which  this  Thesis  gives  a 
transliteration,  translation  and  commentary.  For  this  reason  I  here- 
with append  the  following  translation: 

"0  lord,  highest  of  the  gods,    alone  in  heaven  and  earth  exalted! 

0  father  Nannar,  lord  of  Ansar,  highest  of  the  gods! 

0  father  Nannar,  lord  Anu  the  great,  highest  of  the  gods! 

0  father  Nannar,  lord  Sin,  highest  of  the  gods! 

0  father  Nannar,  lord  of  Cr,  highest  of  the  gods! 

0  father  Nannar,  lord  of  E-gissirgal,  highest  of  the  gods! 

0  father  Nannar,  lord  of  the  shining  crown,    highest  of  the  gods! 

0  father  Nannai-,  of  most  perfect  royalty,  highest  of  the  gods! 

0  father  Nannar,  in  royal  robes  marching,  highest  of  the  gods! 

0  strong  young  bullock,  with  great  horns,  of  perfect  physical  strength, 
with  hazel-colored  pointed  beard  of  luxurious  growth  and  per- 
fect fulness! 

0  fruit,  whose  stalk  growing  of  itself  reacheth  a  tall  form,  beauti- 
ful to  look  upon,  whose  perfection  never  satiateth! 

0  mother,  the  producer  of  life,  thou  who  settest  up  for  the  crea- 
tures of  life  a  lofty  dwelling! 

0  merciful  and  gracious  father,  thou  who  boldest  in  hand  the  life 
of  all  the  land! 

0  lord,  thy  divinity,  like  the  distant  heavens  and  the  broad  sea, 
inspireth  reverence! 

0  creator  of  the  lands,  founding  the  temple  and  giving  it  a  name! 

0  namer  of  royalty,  determiner  of  the  future  for  distant  days! 

0  mighty  prince,  whose  distant  thought  no  god  can  declare. 

0  thou  whose  knee  bendeth  not,  opener  of  the  road  for  the  gods 
thy  brothers! 

0  thou  who  goest  forth  from  the  foundation  of  heaven  to  the  height 
of  heaven,  opening  the  door  of  heaven,  creating  light  for  all  men! 

0  father,  begetter  of  all,  who  lookest  upon  the  creatures  of  life, 
who  thinkest  of  them! 

0  lord,  who  fixest  the  destiny  of  heaven  and  earth,  whose  command 
no  one  changeth! 

O  thou  who  boldest  the  fire  and  the  water,  who  turnest  the  life 
of  creation,  what  god  reacheth  thy  fulness! 

Who  in  heaven  is  high?     Thou  alone  art  high. 

Who  on  earth  is  high?     Thou  alone  art  high. 

As  for  thee,  when  thy  word  is  spoken  in  heaven,  the  Igigi  bow 
down  the  face. 

As  for  thee,  when  thy  word  is  spoken  on  earth,  the  Anunaki  kiss 
the  ground. 

As  for  thee,  when  thy  word  like  the  wind  resoundeth  on  high,  food 
and  drink  abound. 


—    12    — 

As  for  thee,  when  thy  word  is  established  in  the  land,  it  causeth 

vegetation  to  grow. 
As  for  thee,  thy  word  maketh  fat  the  herd  and  flock  and  inceaseth 

the  creatures  of  life. 
As  for  thee,  thy  word  secureth  truth  and  righteousness  and  causeth 

men  to  speak  righteousness. 
As  for  thee,  thy  word  extendeth  to  heaven,  it  covereth  the  earth, 

no  one  can  comprehend  it. 
As  for  thee,  thy  word,  who  can  understand  it,  who  can  approach  it! 
0  lord,   in  heaven  supreme,  on  earth  the  leader,  among  the  gods 

thy  brothers  without  a  rival. 
0  king  of  kings,  the  lofty  one,  whose  command  no  one  approacheth, 

whose  divinity  no  god  can  liken. 
Where  thy  eye  looketh  thou  showest  favor,  where  thy  hand  toucheth 

thou  securest  salvation. 
0  lord,  the  shining  one,  who  directeth  truth  and  righteousness  in 

heaven  and  earth  and  causeth  them  to  go  forth. 
Look  graciously  on  thy  temple,  look  graciously  on  thy  city. 
Look  graciously  on  Ur,  look  graciously  on  E-gis&irgal, 
Thy  beloved  consort,  the  gracious  mother,  calleth  to  thee :  0  lord  give  rest ! 
The  hero  SamaS  calleth  to  thee:  0  lord  give  rest! 
The  Igigi  call  to  thee:  0  lord  give  rest! 
The  Anunnaki  call  to  thee :  0  lord  give  rest ! 

calleth  to  thee:  0  lord  give  rest! 

Ningal  calleth  to  thee:  0  lord  give  rest! 

May    the  bar  of  Ur,  the  enclosure  of  E-gissirgal  and  the  building 

of  Ezida  be  established! 
The  gods  of  heaven  and  earth  call  to  thee:  0  lord  give  rest! 
The  lifting  up  of  the  hand.     48  lines  on  the  tablet  to  Nannar. 
Mighty  one.     Lord  of  strength. 
Like  its  original,  copied  and  revised. 
Tablet  of  l&tar-suma-eres,  the  chief  scribe. 
Of  ASurbanipal,  king  of  legions,  king  of  Assyria, 
Son  of  Nabu-zer-listeJsir,  chief  penman."     IV  It.  9. 

This  Asurbanipal  hymn  may  be  considered  as  remarkable  for 
its  advanced  ideas.  In  the  first  part  of  the  hymn  there  is  intro- 
duced the  mythological  idea  of  the  bullock's  bead  in  the  moon 
with  horns  and  the  face  with  flowing  hazel-colored  beard,  so  that 
strength  and  brilliancy  are  pointed  out.  But  the  hymn  advances 
into  literal  speech  by  which  the  most  varied  and  greatest  of  divine 
attributes  are  attached  to  the  god  Nannar.  He  is  named  as  sovereign 
god,  a  self-created  god,  a  merciful  god,  the  begetter  of  all  life,  the 
maintainer  of  the  life  of  the  world,  the  bestower  of  gifts  to  men, 
the  establisher  of  dwellings;  he  fixes  destinies,  pronounces  judgment, 


—    13    — 

gives  water  to  man  and  supplies  him  with  vegetable  food.  He 
holds  a  unique  and  exalted  position  in  heaven  and  on  earth  above 
all  other  beings.  To  him  the  angels  of  heaven  and  spirits  of  earth 
bow,  and  at  his  command  the  forces  of  nature  perform  their  mar- 
vellous functions. 

3.  Adad 
The  storm-god  is  known  by  the  Sumerian  ideogram  1m.  The 
sign  IMMU  in  the  El-Amarna  tablets  (1500  B.  C.)  has  the  reading 
Adad,  a  name  connected  with  the  Syrian  Hadad.  Oppert  thinks 
Adad  is  the  god's  oldest  name.  It  seems  evidently  a  foreign  equi- 
valent for  Im.  The  Assyrian  name  Ramman  is  a  provisional  name 
meaning  "thunderer",  and  probably  only  an  epithet.  The  sign  IMMU 
has  also  the  value  Mer.  This  is,  no  doubt,  the  original  and  real 
name  of  the  god,  which  appears  as  well  in  the  form  Immer.  The 
primary  idea  in  the  name  is  that  of  wind,  then,  that  of  rain  and 
finally  of  thunder  and  lightning.  The  god  is  not  an  object  like 
Nannar,  but  a  force;  then  the  force  is  personified  and  he  is  spoken 
of  as  a  person.  Hammurabi  puts  him  in  the  second  triad  of  gods. 
He  is  the  third  person  of  that  triad ,  Sin  being  the  first  person 
and  Samas  the  second.  Generally  lstar  has  the  third  place  in  the 
second  triad.  In  that  case  Ramman  falls  outside  of  that  triad 
and  takes  position  among  all  the  gods  as  seventh  in  importance. 
The  order  is  as  follows:  Anu,  Bel,  Ea,  Sin,  Samas,  lstar,  Adad 
(Ramman).  As  a  Babylonian  god  we  find  Ramman's  name  appears 
in  Hammurabi's  time  as  a  common  name  in  literature.  He  is  in- 
voked in  Hammurabi's  Code ,  like  other  gods ,  of  course  in  his 
sphere  as  a  storm-god.  Thus:  "If  a  man  will  pay  no  attention  to 
my  words,  may  Adad,  the  lord  of  abundance,  the  regent  of  heaven 
and  earth,  my  helper,  deprive  him  of  the  rain  from  heaven  and 
the  water-floods  from  the  springs!  May  he  bring  his  land  to  de- 
struction through  want  and  hunger!  May  he  break  loose  furiously 
over  his  city  and  turn  his  land  into  a  heap  left  by  a  whirlwind!"1 
With  the  kings  of  the  Cassite  dynasty  Ramman  seems  to  be  popular. 
His  name  appears  by  the  side  of  that  of  Samas  and  he  is  called 
the  divine  lord  of  justice.  In  the  Babylonian  dynasty  of  kings, 
Nebuchadnezzar  I.  addresses  Ramman  as  the  great  lord  of  heaven, 
the  lord  of  the  subterranean  waters  and  rain,  whose  curse  is  in- 
voked against  the  one  who  sets  aside  the  deci'ees  of  Nebuchadnezzar 
or  defaces  his  monument. 


1  (Col.  XLII,  18  a)  Sum-ma  a-me(PI)-lum  (19)  a-md(PI)-ti-ia  (22)  la 
i-gul-tna  (Col.  XLIII,  64)  Ou  Adad  be-el  hegallim  (65)  gu-gal  Sd-me-e  (66)  u 
ir-$i-tim  (67)  ri-zu-u-a  (68)  zu-ni  i-na  Sd-me-e  (69)  mi-lam  (70)  i-na  na- 
ak-bi-im  (71)  li-te-ir-&u  (72)  ma-zu  (73)  i-na  hu-Sd-ah-hi-im  (74)  ii  bu-bu- 
tim  (75)  li-hal-li-ik  (76)  e-li  ali-su  (77)  iz-zi-i§  (78)  li-is-si-ma  (79)  ma-zu 
ana  til  a-bu-bi-im  (80)  li-te-ir  (CH.  Plates  LXXVI,  LXXIX  and  LXXX). 


—    14    — 

Ramman  is  thought  to  be  more  truly  an  Assyrian  than  a 
Babylonian  god.  He  is  almost  as  dear  to  the  Assyrian  as  the  god 
Asur.  Historical  data,  however,  do  not  furnish  very  early  mention 
of  his  name  in  Assyria.  We  find  that  he  had  a  seat  of  worship 
in  Damascus ,  and  his  cult  had  vogue  in  the  plain  of  Jezreel ,  his 
name  appearing  in  Hebrew,  written  by  mistake,  after  the  text  was 
Masoretically  vocalized,  "Riromon"  which  is  exactly  the  same  in 
form  as  the  Hebrew  word  for  pomegranate.  In  Assyria  we  can 
trace  his  history  back  to  some  extent  by  means  of  inscriptions  in 
which  his  name  appears  as  an  element  in  the  compound  names  of 
kings.  For  example,  we  find  his  name  in  the  name  of  the  ancient 
Assyrian  king  Samas-Ramman,  and  from  an  insciiption  of  Tiglath- 
pileser  I.  we  learn  also  that  SamaS-Ramman  built  a  temple  to  the 
god  Ramman.  So  we  have  historical  evidence  that  the  cult  of 
Ramman  is  older  in  Assyria  than  this  king,  who  was  reigning  in 
1820  B.  C.  How  much  older  it  may  be  we  do  not  know.  Jastrow 
thinks  that  the  cult  is  indigenous  to  Assyrian  soil. 

Between  the  time  of  Samas-Ramman  and  the  time  of  Tiglath- 
pileser  I.  the  service  of  Ramman  must  have  declined  somewhat, 
for  the  temple  of  Ramman  in  thev  city  of  ASsur  seems  not  to  have 
been  repaired  from  the  days  of  Samas-Ramman  till  Tiglath-pileser 
himself  rebuilt  it.  Tiglath-pileser  says  that  from  the  time  of  the 
founding  it  was  in  decay  six  hundred  and  forty  years.  Then  king 
Asurdan  tore  it  down  entirely.  Sixty  years  after  the  entire  des- 
truction, Tiglath-pileser  builds  the  temple  anew.  He  says  that  in 
the  beginning  of  his  government  the  great  gods  Anu  and  Adad 
demanded  for  him  the  restoration  of  their  sacred  dwelling.  "I  made 
bricks  and  cleared  its  ground  until  I  reached  the  artificial  flat 
terrace  upon  which  the  old  temple  had  been  built.  I  laid  its 
foundation  upon  the  solid  rock  and  the  whole  place  incased  with 
bricks  like  a  fire-place,  overlaid  on  it  a  layer  of  fifty  bricks  in 
depth  and  built  upon  this  the  foundations  of  the  temple  of  Anu 
and  Adad  of  large  square  stones.  I  built  it  up  from  foundation 
to  roof,  larger  and  grander  than  before,  and  erected  also  two  great 

temple  towers fitting  ornaments  of  their  great  divinities."1 

From  Tiglath-pileser  on,  temples  of  Ramman  do  not  seem  to  be 
often  mentioned,  but  the  god  himself  is  frequently  spoken  of  in 
inscriptions  of  the  kings.     Sargon  II.  has  one  of  the  eastern  gates 


1  (Col.  VII,  75  b)  libnati  al-bi-in  (76)  kak-kar-Su  u-mi-si  (77)  dan- 
na-su  ak-Sud  ui-ie-e-iu  (78)  i-na  eli  ki-sir  iadi-i  dan-ni  ad-di  (79)  ai- 
ra  id-a-tu  a-na  si-hir-ti-iu  (80)  i-na  libnati  ki-ma  ka-nu-ni  as-pu-uk 
(81)  L  ti-ip-ki  a-na  &u-pa-li  (82)  ii-ti-bi  i-na  muh-hi-iu  (83)  ui-ie  bit 
ilu  A-nim  it  Bu  Ramman  (84)  id  bu-u-li  ad-di  (85)  ii-tti  xii-ie-iu  a-di 
tnh-hi-bi-Su  (86)  e-bu-ui  eli  mah-ri-e  ut-tir  (87)  II  si-kur-ra-te  rabu-te 
(88)  id  a-na  si-mat  ilu-li-iu-nu  rabi-te  (89)  iii-lu-ka  lu-ii  ab-ni-ma  (I  R.  15). 


—    15    — 

of  his  temple  named  "Ramman  the  producer  of  abundance".  Asur- 
banipal  enumerates  thirteen  gods  whom  he  honors  as  the  great 
gods,  and  places  Ramman  fifth  in  the  list. 

Ramman's  most  esteemed  service  was  that  of  bestowing  bless- 
ing. The  rains  in  the  right  proportion  were  a  boon  to  the  land, 
filling  the  canals  and  watering  the  soil.  Hammurabi  calls  Ramman 
the  lord  of  abundance  and  his  helper.  Tiglath-pileser  I.  prays  for  the 
blessings  of  prosperity,  as  he  prays  to  Adad :  "May  Anu  and  Adad 
turn  to  me  truly  and  accept  graciously  the  lifting  up  of  my  hand, 
hearken  unto  my  devout  prayers ,  grant  me  and  my  reign  abun- 
dance of  rain ,  years  of  prosperity  and  fruitfulness  in  plenty." l 
Asurbanipal  describes  the  blessings  he  receives  by  the  favor  of 
this  god:  'Ramman  let  loose  his  showers  and  Ea  has  opened  his 
springs,  the  grain  has  grown  to  a  height  of  five  yards  and  the 
ears  have  been  five  sixths  of  a  yard  long,  the  produce  of  the  land 
has  been  abundant  and  the  fruit  trees  have  borne  fruit  richly."'2 
The  mention  of  Anu  and  Ea  with  Ramman  is  because  of  their 
power  to  produce  water,  Ea  representing  the  depths  of  water  and 
Anu  the  heaven  with  its  clouds  of  rain. 

The  most  conspicuous  work  of  Ramman  was  that  of  destruction. 
It  is  in  this  function  of  judgment  that  he  is  associated  with  Samas. 
The  connection  lies  in  the  fact  that  the  lightning  of  Ramman  is 
like  the  day-light  of  Samas;  so,  as  the  god  of  lightning,  Ramman 
has  the  title  birku.  Lightning  and  flooding  rain  were ,  because 
of  their  destructive  character,  fearful  forces,  and  the  kings  in  call- 
ing for  a  curse  on  hostile  man  or  land  turn  to  Ramman  in 
imprecation,  as,  for  example,  Raman-Nirari  I.  does  concerning  the 
man  who  may  be  tempted  to  blot  out  the  record  of  Ramraan- 
Nirari's  name:  "May  Ramman  with  terrible  rainstorm  overwhelm 
him,  may  flood,  destruction,  wind,  rebellion,  revolution,  tempest, 
want  and  famine,  drought  and  hunger  be  continually  in  his  land. 
May  he  come  down  on  his  land  like  a  flood.  May  he  turn  it  into 
mounds  and  ruins.  May  Ramman  strike  his  land  with  a  destruc- 
tive bolt."3 


1  (Col.  VIII,  23)  H-u  A-nim  u  Hu  Bammdnu  (24)  ki-niS  li-sih-ru-ni-ma 
(25)  ni-is  ka-ti-ia  li-ra-mu  (26)  te-me-ik  ik-ri-be-ia  liS-me-u  (27)  zu-u-ni 
da-ah-du-te  Bd-na-at  (28)  nic-tih-Se  it,  bar-ri-e  a-na  pali-ia  (29)  lis-ru-ku 
(I  R".  16). 

2  (Col.  I,  45)  *h*  Rammanu  zunni-Su  u-maS-si-ra  ilu  E-a  u-pat-ti-ra 
nakbu-Su  (46)  hansu  ana  ammatu  se-am  iS-ku  ina  abseni-Su  (47)  e-ri-ik  Su- 
bid-tu  parab  ana  ammatu  (48  a)  isir  eburu  (50)  &u-um-mu-ha  in-bu  (V  R.  1). 

3  (38  b)  »'fr*  Bammdnu  i-na  ri-hi-is  (39)  li-mu-ti  li-ir-hi-su  a-bu-bu 
(40)  Saru  limnu  sa-alyma-as-tu  te-$u-u  (41)  a-Sam-Su-tu  su-un-ku  bu-bu-tu 
(42)  a-ru-ur-tu  hu-Sd-hu  i-na  mdti-Sii  lu  ka-ia-an  mdti-Su  a-bu-bi-iS  lu-nS- 
ba-i  (43)  a-na  tilt  u  kar-mi  lu-ti-ir  &*  Rammanu  i-na  be-ri-Su  li-mu-ti 
mdti-Su  li-ib-ri  (IV  R.  39,  Rev.). 


—    16    — 

Some  Babylonian  composer  has  6et  forth  the  terrifying  side 
of  Ramman's  character  in  a  bilingual  hymn  as  follows: 

"The  lord  in  his  anger  himself  makes  heaven  quake. 

Adad  in  his  wrath  lifts  up  the  earth. 

The  mighty  mountain  he  himself  smites  down. 

At  his  anger,  at  his  wrath, 

At  his  roaring,  at  his  thundering, 

The  gods  of  heaven  ascend  to  heaven, 

The  gods  of  earth  enter  earth, 

Samal  into  the  foundation  of  heaven  enters, 

Sin  in  the  height  of  heaven  is  magnified."1 

4.  Tammuz 

There  is  a  fascination  about  the  life  of  Tammuz  not  experienced 
in  the  contemplation  of  the  other  gods  of  Babylonia.  He  seems 
to  be  presented  to  us  just  as  though  he  were  a  man. 

Our  first  paragraph  may  describe  him  as  a  resident  of  one  of 
the  ancient  cities  of  southern  Babylonia.  The  city  of  his  residence 
was  Eridu  on  the  banks  of  the  Euphrates.  His  official  title  is  that 
of  sun-god  and  his  occupation  is  to  care  for  the  growth  of  plants. 
The  name  of  his  father  was  Ea,  the  lord  of  the  city  of  Eridu, 
whose  duties  consisted  in  governing  the  waters  of  the  river  on 
whose  shore  the  city  rested.  Tammuz  had  a  mother,  whose  name 
was  Davkina,  the  mistress  of  the  vine.  Tammuz  also  had  a  sister 
Belili  whose  calling  was,  like  that  of  Tammuz  her  brother,  the 
care  of  plant  growth.  Tammuz  also  had  a  bride,  the  famous  and 
treacherous  Istar,  the  goddess  of  love,  represented  by  the  evening 
star;  she  was  mistress  of  the  neighbouring  city  of  Erech,  a  little 
to  the  north-west,  and  on  the  other  side  of  the  Euphrates.  The 
life  of  Tammuz  at  Eridu  was  romantic  and  his  days  ended  in 
tragedy.  There  is  a  little  poem,  giving  a  picture  of  his  home. 
There  was  a  garden,  a  holy  place,  abundantly  shaded  with  profuse 
leafage  of  trees  whose  roots  went  down  deep  into  the  waters  over 
which  Ea  presided.  His  couch  was  hung  under  the  rich  foliage 
of  the  vine  which  his  mother  tended.     There  Tammuz  dwelt  and 


1  (9b)  an  mu-un-da-iir-iir  (10)  be-lum  ina  a-ga-gi-Su  Sa-mu-u  i-ta-na- 
ar-ra-ru-Su  (11)  dimmer  Mer  Sur-ra-na  ki  Si-in-ga-bul-bul  (12)  UuRammanu 
ina  e-zi-zi-iu  ir-$i-tum  i-na-as-su  (13)  har-sag  gal-gal-e  Sd-ka-a  ba-an-na- 
ku-eS  (14)  Sa-du-u  ra-bu-tu  su-uh-hu-pu-Su  (15)  ib-ba-bi-ta  Sur-ra-bi-ta  (16)  a- 
na  a-ga-gi-Su  a-na  e-zi-zi-&u  (17)  ('t)-ge-bi-ta  har-du-bi-ta  (18)  a-na  Sd-gi-mi- 
&u  a-na  ra-mi-mi-Su  (19)  dim-me-ir  an-nage  an-na  ba-an-dul-dn-ne  (20)  ildni 
Sa  Sa-me-e  a-na  Sam-e  i-te-lu-u  (21)  dim-me-ir  kige  ki-a  ba-an-bul-ne-es 
(22)  ildni  Sa  ir-$itim  a-na  ir-si-tim  i-te-ir-bu  (23)  dimmer  Babbar  an  iir- 
ra  ba-da-Su-Su-ru  (24)  ina  i-Sid  Same-e  i-te-ru-ub  (25)  dimmer  Si$-ki  an 
2>a-8ii  ba-da-kabar  (26)  ina  e-lat  Same-e  ir-ta-bi  (IV  R.  28,  2). 


—     17     — 

there  was  his  shrine.  His  dwelling  of  foliage  in  his  youthful  days 
was  symbolic  of  the  domain  in  which  the  virtue  of  his  power  was 
to  be  exercised.  His  real  home  was  in  heaven,  for  from  heaven 
the  virtue  of  plant-growth  procedes  with  the  heat  of  the  sun.  But 
his  connection  with  heaven  had  been  forgotten,  except  in  remini- 
scence found  in  legend.  In  the  legend  of  Adapa,  for  instance,  we 
find  a  hint  of  it.  Tammuz  and  his  companion  Giszida  are  seen 
mounting  up  to  heaven  where  they  receive  stations  as  door-keepers 
in  the  gate  of  Anu's  house;  in  heaven  they  properly  belong. 

The  descent  of  Tammuz  to  the  lower  world  implies  that  he 
died ,  but  the  accounts  have  not  made  a  direct  statement  of  how 
he  died,  or  what  was  the  cause  of  his  death.  Perhaps  we  may 
conceive  of  the  event  of  his  death  as  having  taken  place  at  Eridu 
before  the  service  of  lamentation  had  developed  into  a  cult  honored 
at  the  court  of  Sargon  of  Akkad,  where  a  temple  was  built  for 
Tammuz  after  northern  Babylonia  had  gained  the  ascendency  over 
southern  Babylonia.  The  literal  cause  of  his  death  was  that  he  was 
not  capable  of  making  plant-growth  a  continuous  process.  The 
power  of  the  heat  of  the  sun  as  the  summer  advanced  was  superior 
to  the  virtue  which  Tammuz  possessed  over  plant-life.  The  fierce 
heat  of  the  summer  caused  vegetation  to  take  a  paler  hue;  then 
the  germs  of  decay  entered;  slowly  and  surely  the  face  of  the  land 
was  assuming  the  same  state  that  existed  before  the  power  of 
Tammuz  appeared  to  quicken  the  blade  of  grass  and  the  fruit-bud 
of  the  early  spring.  So  Tammuz  was  banished  to  the  lower  world. 
Bomantically  his  entrance  to  the  abode  of  the  dead  was  due  to 
the  hand  which  I§tar  had  in  the  events  of  his  life.  She  had  many 
lovers,  and  she  betrayed  them  all.  Her  betrayal  in  the  case  of 
Tammuz  consisted  in  not  aiding  him  in  her  sphere  as  great  mother 
in  the  production  of  life  on  earth.  Had  she  supplemented  his 
effort  and  made  the  earth  continue  to  bear  and  bring  forth,  counter- 
acting the  effect  of  the  deadly  heat  of  the  summer  solstice  and  the 
destructive  wind  of  the  south,  the  gardens  and  the  fruit  orchards 
over  whose  productiveness  Tammuz  presided  would  have  enjoyed 
perennial  fruitage,  and  Gilgames  would  never  have  had  to  take 
up  the  sad  accusation  against  Istar: 

"Tammuz,  the  spouse  of  thy  youth, 
Thou  compellest  to  weep  year  after  year."1 
Also  there  had  never  gone  up  the  song  of  lamentation: 
"He  went  down  to  meet  the  nether  world, 
He  has  sated  himself,  Samas  caused  him  to  perish 
To  the  land  of  the  dead. 


1  (46)  a-na  *&*  Dumu-zi  ha-mi-ri  su-[uh-]ri-ti-ki  (47)  §at-ta  a-na  Sat-ti 
bi-tak-ka-a  tal-ti-miS-Su  (BN.  Tafel  VI). 


2 


—    18    — 

With  mourning  was  he  filled  on  the  day 
When  he  fell  into  great  sorrow."1 

According  to  another  story  of  the  fate  of  Tammuz,  IStar  was 
the  victim  of  sudden  and  violent  passion,  and  in  a  fit  of  anger 
for  disregard  of  her  command  she  had  smitten  him  down,  just  as 
she  crushed  the  allallu-biri  she  loved: 

"Thou  didst  crush  him  and  break  his  pinions. 

In  the  woods  he  stands  and  laments, 

'0  my  pinions'."2 

Also  as  she  cast  out  of  her  sight  the  lion : 

*Thou  didst  love  a  lion  of  perfect  strength, 

Seven  and  seven  times  thou  didst  bury  him  in  the  corners."3 
The  origin  of  the  service  of  weeping  for  Tammuz  is  an  in- 
teresting legend.  When  Istar  had  slain  her  lover,  she  hastened, 
like  the  going  down  of  the  evening  star,  to  the  lower  world  in 
search  of  waters  to  restore  him  to  life.  She  searches  long,  passing 
through  all  the  compartments  of  Hades.  The  story  does  not  give 
details  of  her  finding  Tammuz ,  but  instead,  a  scene  of  his  burial 
is  introduced: 

"To  Tammuz,  her  youthful  consort 

Pour  out  pure  waters,  costly  oil."4 
A  scene  of  the  mourning  for  Tammuz  is  also  introduced,  which 
may  be  taken  as  the  original  lamentation,  all  other  summer  solstice 
weepings    being   anniversaries    of  this    original  one.     His  sister  is 
there  lamenting: 

"0  my  only  brother,  let  me  not  perish!"5 
And  a  great  company  of  mourners  sing  dirges  by  the  accom- 
pany ment    of   the  flute  and  follow  the  instruction  which  Tammuz, 
though  dead,  seems  to  be  giving  then  and  there: 

"On  the  day  of  Tammuz  play  for  me, 

On  the  flute  of  uknu  and  samtu! 

With  it  play  for  me!    With  it  play  for  me! 


1  (23)  il-lak  i-lak  ana  i-rat  ir-$i-tim  (25)  uS-ta-bar-ri  On  SamaS  ir- 
ta-bi-&ii  ana  ir-?i-tim  mi-tu-ti  (27)  ni-iz-za-tu  ma-li  i-na  u-um  im-ku-tu-ma 
ina  i-dir-tim  (IV  R.  30,  2). 

2  (49)  tam-ha-?i-$u-ma  kap-pa-Su  tal-te-bir  (50)  iz-za-az  ina  ki-Sa- 
Urn  i-sis-si  kap-pi  (BN.  Tafel  VI). 

3  (51)  ta-ra-mi-ma  n£Su  ga-mi-ir  e-mu-ki  (52)  7  m  7  tu-uJi-tar-ri-iS-Su 
Srii-ut-ta-a-ti  (BN.  Tafel  VI). 

1  (47)  ana  On  Dumu-zi  ha-mir  si-ih-ru-ti-Sa  (48)  me  il-lu-ti  ra-am- 
me-ik  iamnu  tabu  (from  lstar's  Descent  into  Hades.  K.  162.  Reverse. 
CT.  XV,  Plate  47.     Also  IV  R.  31). 

5  (55)  a-hi  e-du  la  ta-hab-bil-an-ni  (from  lstar's  Descent  into  Hades. 
K.  162.     Reverse.     CT.  XV',  Plate  47.     Also  IV  R.  31). 


—    19    — 

0  male  and  female  mourners! 

That  the  dead  may  arise  and  inhale  incense!"1 

Of  course  the  story  is  not  finished  and  the  circle  of  events 
not  completed  without  the  resurrection  of  Tammuz.  In  a  Chaldaean 
intaglio  there  is  a  picture  of  Tammuz  rejuvenated  on  the  knees 
of  lstar  (see  Clercq  Vol.  I,  Plate  IX,  No.  83).  Some  forms  of 
the  story  must  include  his  return  to  the  earth ,  and  the  complete 
service  of  lamentation  must  have  been  sometimes  supplemented 
by  a  service  of  joy  in  which  the  idea  of  resurrection  was  significant. 

Though  the  original  lamentation  was  an  expression  of  grief 
for  Tammuz  dead,  the  fully  developed  ceremony  was  an  expression 
of  several  pathetic  ideas.  It  was  accompanied  with  sacrifice  and 
offerings  of  wine.  In  Babylonia  the  commemoration  was  observed 
every  year  on  the  second  day  of  the  fourth  month,  called  the 
month  of  Tammuz.  It  was  not  only  a  weeping  for  dead  Tammuz, 
but  a  weeping  for  dead  vegetation.  The  dying  leaf  had  a  mourner. 
The  withered  stock  had  a  sympathizing  friend.  For  the  blasted 
blade  of  grass  there  was  shed  a  tear.  For  the  barren  tree  bereft 
of  golden  foliage  and  luscious  fruit  there  went  up  a  cry  of  sym- 
pathy. The  ceremony  was  an  expression  of  sadness  that  came  over 
the  people  as  the  oppression  of  the  heat  of  summer  bore  down 
upon  them,  the  water  supply  being  reduced,  vegetable  life  put  out 
and  human  life  consequently  made  almost  unendurable  by  the  de- 
privation and  heat  of  summer.  The  time  of  weeping  was  one  for 
the  expression  of  personal  sorrow  that  lurks  in  almost  every  heart. 
The  wail  of  anguish  was  a  relief  to  souls  burdened  with  their  own 
peculiar  griefs.  The  soul  found  relief  in  lifting  up  the  voice  at- 
tuned to  some  form  of  elegy.  There  came  a  relief  like  the  rolling 
of  the  burden  of  guilt  from  the  breast.  The  ceremony  was  one  that 
embraced  in  its  performance  the  expression  of  confession.  It  was,  how- 
ever, performed  with  the  consciousness  that  the  drought  of  summer 
was  but  for  a  season,  and  that  there  was  to  follow  a  period  of  happier 
existence,  as  the  succeeding  winter  should  merge  into  a  new  spring. 

Tammuz  was  supposed  to  leave  the  land  with  the  season 
when  the  spring  growth  was  completed,  to  come  back  again  in 
the  following  year.  He  is  considered  as  dead,  but  his  death  is 
not  an  absolute  one.  He  tells  the  mourners  what  to  do  as  they 
gather  about  his  bier.  According  to  some  allusions  he  seems  also 
to  be  a  lord,  as  it  were,  in  the  bowels  of  the  earth,  preparing  the 
inner  earth  for  putting  forth  a  new  stock  of  vegetation,  as  spring 
shall  come.     Hence,  the  hymn  to  Tammuz  in  this  Thesis  calls  him 

1  (56)  ina  ii-me  ^u  Dumu-zi  el-la-an-ni  mqlil  aimu  uhni  abnu  sarfiti 
it-ti-Su  el-la-an-ni  (57)  it-ti-su  el-la-an-ni  amelu  ER  (A.Sl)  **■  u  zinniku  ER 
(A.Sl)  Pi-  A. Si  (58)  mituti  li-lu-nim-ma  kuf-ri-in  li-is-si-nu  (from  Istar's 
Descent  into  Hades.   K.  162.   Reverse.   CT.  XV,  Plate  47.  Also  IV  R.  31). 

2* 


—    20    — 

"the  generator  of  the  lower  world".  His  association  with  his  friend 
Gi&zida  substantiates  more  fully  the  idea  of  his  resurrection.  To  give 
vitality  to  his  work  he  still  maintains  his  old  personality  of  sun-god, 
and  to  him  again  is  giveD  a  seat  in  heaven,  as  the  Adapa  legend  shows : 

"On  mounting  up  to  heaven, 

At  the  gate  of  Anu 

Tammuz  and  GiSzida  were  stationed."1 
The  story  of  Tammuz  seems  to  have  taken  deep  and  almost 
universal  hold  of  the  imagination  and  sympathy  of  mankind.  The 
weeping  for  Tammuz  is  said  to  have  been  maintained  by  the 
Babylonians  till  a  very  late  pei-iod.  Similar  stories  to  that  of  the 
Tammuz  legend  existed  in  about  the  same  period  of  history  among 
the  Phoenicians,  the  Hebrews,  the  Greeks  and  the  Egyptians,  the 
most  of  these  accounts  having  a  common  origin;  if  they  have 
more  than  one  origin,  they  seem  nevertheless  to  blend  in  the  main 
into  one  story.  It  is  said  that  in  the  Phoenician  town  of  Gebal 
by  the  Mediterranian  on  the  road  leading  from  the  people  of  the 
east  to  those  of  the  west,  there  is  a  yearly  lamentation  over  the 
death  of  their  sun-god,  the  beloved  Astoreth ,  who  had  been  slain 
by  a  cruel  hand,  just  as  the  spring  verdure  was  cut  down  by  the 
hot  blasts  of  summer.  The  women,  tearing  their  hair,  disfiguring 
their  faces  and  cutting  their  breasts,  sent  up  a  cry  to  heaven: 
"0  my  brother!"  Across  the  sea  by  the  way  of  Cyprus,  the  ciy  is 
said  to  have  been  earned  to  Greece  where  it  found  embodiment  in 
the  story  of  Adonis  and  Aphrodite.  Possibly,  however,  the  Greek 
story  may  be  indigenous.  Adonis  lost  his  life  while  hunting,  thrust 
through  the  thigh  with  the  tusk  of  a  wild  boar.  After  death  he 
was  in  great  favour  with  Persephone  who  finally  yielded  to  the 
entreaties  of  the  inconsolable  Aphrodite,  and  Adonis  spent  one  half 
of  the  year  with  his  celestial  mistress  and  the  other  half  with  his 
infernal  one.  How  much  place  the  annual  weeping  for  a  departed 
one  had  among  the  Hebrews  may  be  inferred  to  some  extent  by 
the  mention  made  in  the  Scriptures  of  the  service.  Zechariah 
speaks  of  the  well-known  mourning  of  Hadadrimmon  in  the  valley 
of  Megiddon,  and  Amos  refers  to  the  custom  of  mourning  for  an 
only  son.  Ezekiel  says  that  the  Lord  brought  him  to  Jehovah's 
house  "and  behold,  there  sat  the  women  weeping  for  Tammuz". 
Jeremiah  goes  a  step  further  and  gives  us  the  refrain  which  was 
used  in  the  weeping:  "Ah  me!  Ah  my  brother!"  The  parallel  story 
in  Egypt  had  for  its  hero  the  god  Osiris  who,  representing  goodness, 
upon  being  slain  by  a  foe,  became  judge  of  the  dead,  though  his 
soul  continued  in  existence  among  men. 

1  (2)  a-na  Sa-me-e  i-na  e-U-iu  a-na  ba-ab  flu  A-ni  i-na  te-he-$ti 
(3)  i-na  ba-a-bu  flu  A-ni  flu  Dumu-zi  **«  GiS-zi-da  iz-za-az-zu  (from  the 
Legend  of  Adapa  and  the  South  Wind.    TEA.  Vol.  Ill,  240.  Rev.). 


Transliteration,  Translation  and 
Commentary 

Chapter  I 

Tablet  13963,  Plate  10,  Hymn  to  Bel 

Obverse 

1.  u-mu-un  na-am-zu-ka  na-hm- se-ir-ma-al  wl(IM)- 

[le-na] 
0    lord    of  wisdom, supreme   by  thyself! 

2    dimmer  Mu-ul-lil  u-mu-un  na-am-zu-ka  ....  se-ir-ma-al  ni(IM)- 
te-na 
0  Bel,  lord  of  wisdom, supreme  by  thyself! 

3.  a-a  dimmer  Mu-ul-lil  u-mu-un-e  kur-kur-ra 
0  father  Bel,  lord  of  the  lands! 

4.  a-a  dimmer  Mu-ul-lil  u-mu-un  dug(KA)-ga  zi(d)-da 
0  father  Bel,  lord  of  righteous  command! 

5.  a-a  dimmer  Mu-ul-lil  siba  sag  gig(MI)-ga 

0  father  Bel,  shepherd  of  the  black-headed! 

6.  a-a  dimmer  Mu-ul-lil  i-de(NE)  gaba  nl(IM)-te-na 
0  father  Bel,  the  only  all-seeing  one ! 

7.  a-a  dimmer  Mu-ul-lil  ama  erim(SAB)-na  di-di 

0  father  Bel,  the  lord  that  executest  judgment  on  thy  enemies! 

8.  a-a  dimmer  Mu-ul-lil  u-ne{r)-la  ma-ma 
0  father  Bel,  the  power  of  the  lands! 

9.  ama  nh-a  gu  ne-sig(PA)  gan-nu  ki 

The  bull  of  the  pasture,  the  bull  that  encompassest  the  pro- 
ductive land! 

10.  dimmer  Mu-ul-lil  nin  kar-ra  ki  damal-ra 
0  Bel,  the  bountiful  lord  of  the  broad  land! 


—    22    — 

11.  u-mu-un  mu-udna  eZw(KAK)  sag-ma-al  hi 

The  lord  of  creation,  the  creator,  the  true  head  of  the  land! 

12.  u-mu-un   zal(NI)-lah(UD)-na  ga   n«nu2-am(A.AN)  da-ma-al-la 
The    lord  whose  shining  oil  is  milk  for  an  extensive  progeny! 

13.  u-mu-un  silim(Dl)-ma-a-ni  eri  ir-ir 

The  lord  whose  decrees  bind  together  the  city, 

14.  du  na-a-ni  d(ID)  am-e  gal-la 

Whose  powerful  dwelling-place  (is  the  seat  of)  a  great  command, 

15.  kur  Mmmer  Babbar  (UD)-e(UD.DU)-fo  kur  dimmer  Babbar(UT))- 

su-su(K\J) 
Prom  the  land  of  the  rising  sun  to  the  land  of  the  setting  sun ! 

16.  kur-ra  u-mu-un  nu-um-ti  za-e  u-mu-un  ab-da-me-en 

0  mountain,  the  lord  of  life,  thou  the  lord  indeed  art! 

Eeverse 

17.  dim7ner  Mu-ul-lil  kur-kur-ra  ga-M-an  nu-um-ti  nin-zu  ga-i" -<ni 

ab-da(-me-en) 
0  Bel  of  the  lands ,  lord  of  life,  lord  of  wisdom ,  lord  indeed 
thou  art! 

18.  e-lum  nl(LM)  an-na  a-kad  za-da  3d  mu-e-da-mal(lG) 

0  mighty  one,  dread  of  heaven,  royal  one  indeed  thou  art! 

19.  dimmer  Mu-ul-lil  u  en(?)  dimmer-ri-ne  za-da  id  mu-e-da-mal(lG) 
0  Bel,  very  lord  of  gods  thou  indeed  art! 

20.  a-a  dimmer  Mu-ul-lil  mu-lu  gu  md(SAR)-md(S£R)-me-en  mu-lu 

he  md(SkB.)vid(SAR)-me-en 
0  father  Bel,   who  causest  vegetation  to  sprout,  who  causest 
grain  to  grow 

21.  dimmer  Mu-ul-lil  me-lam(NE)-zu  gur(KIL)-ra   ha  mu-ni-ib-(  )- 

ne-ne 
0  Bel,  before  thy  great  glory  may  they  be  (in  fear?)! 

22.  hu-e  an-na  ha-e  pu(r)-ra  S&(LIB)n)(IM)  ma-ni-ib-si 

The   birds    of  heaven   and  the   fish  of  the  sea  are  filled  with 
fear  of  thee! 

23.  a-a  dimmer  Mu-ul-lil-li  da-da   mah  mu-egin(DTJ)  sag-e-zi  si- 

ba-e  e-nab 
0  father  Bel,    in  great  strength  thou  goest,  the  head  of  life, 
the  shepherd  of  the  stars! 


—    23    — 

24.  u-mu-un  Tea-  na-am-gd(MAL)  iz-ba  eri  ga  mu-e-gin(DXJ)  gtn(GT) 

si  ti-su(KTJ)  me- a 
0  lord ,   the   mouth    of  production  thou  openest,  as  a  prolific 
city  thou  goest,  the  reed  for  the  fulness  of  life  thou  art. 

25.  a-a  dimmer  Mu-ul-lil  sag  zi  sag  ne(r)-la  su  ti  ba-ni-ib-ag 

0  father  Bel,  the  head  of  life,  the  head  of  strength,  the  power 
of  life  thou  makest  thyself! 

26.  su-gil  nis-ia  mu-bi  im 

Altogether  there  are  twenty-five  lines  in  the  tablet. 

27.  gr(A.SI)  Urn-ma 
Hymn  of  praise. 

This  composition  is  a  hymn  of  praise  to  Bel,  who  is  directly 
addressed.  His  name,  Mu-ul-lil,  appears  in  14  of  the  25  lines  of 
the  hymn,  in  which  he  is  called  distinctively  "father",  the  title 
occurring  8  times. 

The  god  is  addressed  in  the  second  person,  as  is  seen  in  line 
16,  where  za-e,  the  personal  pronoun  of  the  second  person,  is 
applied  to  him,  and  also  in  the  pronominal  phase  of  the  second 
person,  za-da,  found  in  lines  18  and  19,  not  to  mention  other 
less  striking  symbols  of  the   second  person  singular. 

The  hymn  consists  of  many  laudatory  epithets  descriptive  of 
Bel's  divine  nature  and  work.  His  fatherhood  and  lordship  are 
dwelt  upon.  He  is  a  righteous  and  all-wise  father.  His  lordship 
extends  not  only  over  the  land,  but  up  into  the  air  as  well.  He 
provides  subsistence  for  the  creatures  of  earth,  being  also  the 
organizer  of  city  and  state.  He  superintends  also  the  operations 
of  nature  in  the  atmosphere  being  the  dread  of  heaven,  the  lord 
of  gods,  the  occasion  of  fear  among  the  birds  and  fishes,  the  shep- 
herd of  the  storms  (or  stars). 

The  time  of  the  origin  of  this  hymn  is  a  matter  of  conjecture. 
The  form  of  the  signs  offers  some  evidence.  What  the  early  kings 
say  of  Bel  also  throws  some  light  on  the  subject.  The  signs  are, 
of  course,  later  than  the  picture-writing  of  the  hieroglyph,  and 
also  later  than  the  linear  script  suited  to  stone.  These  signs  are 
made  in  clay,  hence  the  wedge  appears.  The  design  of  the  signs 
used  here  has  met  with  some  transformation  since  the  hieroglyph 
was  used,  but  it  has  not  yet  reached  the  chaste  and  symmetrical 
form  given  by  the  hand  of  the  Assyrian.  In  short  the  signs  of 
this  hymn  are  old  Babylonian,  almost  identical  with  those  used  in 
the  inscriptions  of  Eannatum,  Entemena,  Gudea  and  Hammurabi. 
There  are,  however,  some  later  and  even  New- Babylonian  signs 
among  them,  pointing  perhaps  to  transcription  subsequent  to  the 
original  composition. 


—    24    — 

There  is  no  mention  of  any  city  in  the  hymn,  as  there  is  in 
the  hymn  to  Sin,  but  this  hymn  probably  had  its  origin  in  Nippur 
which  was  the  great  religious  centre  of  Babylonia  in  the  pre- 
dynastic  period ,  when  kings  ascribed  their  successes  to  Bel  and 
brought  their  booty  to  Nippur,  calling  Bel  "the  lord  of  the  lands." 


Obverse 

1.  u-mu-un  na-hm-zu-ka  na-hm se-ir-ma-al  nl[le-na] 

0  lord  of  wisdom, supreme  by  thyself! 

u-mu-un  means  "being  lord",  u  equalling  "lord"  and  mu-un 
equalling  "being",  u-mu-un  is  a  phonetic  representation  of  umun 
=  bSlu,  (Br.  9475).  umun  is  sometimes  ideographically  represented 
by  the  sign  GIGURU,  the  corner  wedge  (Br.  8659),  which  signifies 
"depress",  "overpower",  "be  powerful",  "rule",  umun  may  be  shortened 
either  to  u,  mun  or  un,  giving  to  GIGURU  three  values  for 
"lord",  u,  un  and  umun.  umun,  which  is  ES,  has  an  EK  value, 
ugun.  In  line  17,  we  shall  meet  with  another  word  for  "lord"; 
viz.,  ga-Sd-an. 

it:  the  sign  IGI-DIBBU  alone  means  "lord".  It  has  a  well- 
known  Assyrian  equivalent,  labdru,  "be  old",  (Br.  9464).  Brummer 
explains  the  sign  correctly  as  follows:  IGI-DIBBU  is  a  compound 
sign  and  equals  SI,  "eye",  plus  LU,  "take  away",  hence  the  meaning 
"take    away  the  eye",  "become  old",  "elderly",  "lord",  (SVA.  2 — 7). 

mu-un  contracted  to  mun  is  cognate  with  me-en  which  equals 
baiH,  "to  be",  as  in  za-e-me-en  (Br.  10404).  We  shall  meet  the 
form  mu-un  as  a  verbal  prefix. 

mu  here  is  simply  a  dialectic  form  of  me  (MSL.,  p.  240). 
mu  as  a  Sumerian  value  is  attested  by  the  sign-name  MU.  We 
shall  meet  with  MU  in  the  name  Mu-ul-lil,  also  as  a  suffix  and 
in  other  ways.  The  MU  of  our  text  is  old  Babylonian.  It  is  the 
MU  of  Ur-Gur  and  Gudea  (see  brick  of  Ur-Gur,  No.  90009,  CT.  XXI, 
and  Gudea's  Cylinder  A,  Col.  XVIII,  line  27,  in  Dec.  36). 

un  is  plainly  cognate  with  en  which  is  so  commonly  represented 
by  the  sign  ENU.  The  sign  UN  we  shall  meet  again  with  the 
value  kalama.  The  UN  of  our  text  is  a  very  ancient  sign  (see 
Cone  of  Eannatum,  Col.  I,  CT.  XXI,  Tablet  30062). 

na-hm-zu-ka  consists  of  noun,  na-hm-zu  and  postposition  ka. 

na-hm-zu  is  an  abstract  noun  composed  of  the  abstract  prefix 
na-hm  and  the  stem  zu. 

na-hm  equals  Simtu,  "fortune",  (Br.  1609  and  HW.  654)  and  is 
a  dialectic  form  of  nam  (Br.  2103)  which  is  a  common  abstract  prefix. 

na  is  a  Sumerian  value  of  the  sign  NANU.  The  value  is 
simply    syllabic    here.     The    sign   originally  signified  "stone".     Our 


—    25    — 

NA  is  found  both  in  old  Babylonian  tablets  and  in  New-Babylonian 
inscriptions. 

hm  (ES)  also  is  only  syllabic  here.  The  sign  has  the  EK 
value  ag  and  is  used  ideographically. 

zu:  the  sign  representing  zu  has  only  one  value,  presenting  a 
rather  uncommon  circumstance  in  Sumerian.  zu  means  "know", 
also  "be  wise",  and  may  equal  nimeku,  "wisdom",  (Br.  136),  but 
the  author  preferred  to  say  na-hm-zu,  "the  fortune  of  wisdom". 

ka,  sign-name  KAGU,  is  a  postpositive  sign  of  the  genitive. 
The  sign  KAGU  (discussed  below)  is  often  used  in  this  way,  but 
it  has  several  values  and  is  used  to  express  a  large  number  of 
ideas.     ka  as  a  postposition  is  a  dialectic  form  of  ^re(KIT). 

se-ir-ma-al  is  E8  for  the  EK  nir-gal,  s  changing  to  n  and  m 
to  g  (MSL.  p.  XI).  It  is  translated  into  Assyrian  by  the  word 
eteuu.  se-ir-ma-al  consists  then  of  two  parts;  stem  se-ir  and  suffix 
ma-al.     Strictly,  se-ir  is  "lord"  and  §e-ir-ma-al  is  "lordship". 

se-ir:  e  and  i  appear  generally  to  be  distinct  sounds,  but  they 
combine,  just  as  the  two  it's  combine  in  mu-un,  making  mun,  and 
as  the  two  «'s  combine  in  na-hm,  making  nam.  Evidently  the 
weaker  sound  is  absorbed  by  the  stronger,  hence  se-ir  becomes 
ser,  "ruler",  which  could  be  represented  by  NISIGU  (JA.,  1905, 
p.  113,  also  Br.  4306). 

se  is  perhaps  a  Semitic  value  coming  from  se'u,  "grain".  The 
original  sign  is  a  picture  of  a  head  of  grain  like  wheat  or  oats. 
The  name  of  the  sign  is  U-UM.  The  sign  occurs  in  line  20  as 
an  ideogram. 

ir  is  also  Semitic  value  of  the  sign  GAK-GUNU.  We  shall 
meet  the  sign  used  as  a  verb  equal  to  kamu,  "bind". 

ma-al,  phonetically  written  for  mal,  is  an  ending  which  adds 
to  ser  the  idea  of  "bavins";  hence  se-ir-ma-al  means  "having  rule". 

ma:  we  shall  find  MAMU  used  mostly  as  a  noun,  but  it  may 
occur  as  a  verbal  prefix  or  as   a  phonetic  complement. 

al:  the  sign  has  only  one  value,  al,  whose  use  is  principally 
syllabic.     The  sign-name  is  ALLU. 

nl-te-na:  nl-te  is  the  main  word  with  na  as  a  suffix. 

nl-te:  nl  and  te  stand  related  to  each  other  as  object  and 
cognate  verb,  meaning  "fear  a  fear".  The  affinity  of  nl  and  te  is 
shown  by  the  fact  that  the  sign  for  nl,  called  IMMU,  may  have 
the  value  tu  (see  Br.  8355),  then  the  object  and  verb  would  be 
tu-te,  "fear  a  fear"  (see  Possey  in  JA.,  1905,  p.  128).  nl-te  may 
mean  "self"  just  as  nl  may  stand  not  only  for  "fear"  but  for  that 
which  causes  fear  as  Rammdnu,  "the  storm-god",  and  then  by  way 
of  erroneous  association  for  ramdnu,  "self". 

nl:  the  sign  IMMU  is  one  of  the  principal  signs  that  originally 


—    26    — 

denoted  "the  quarter  of  the  heavens".  It  is  used  to  signify  „storm" 
and  many  ideas  connected  with  storm. 

te:  TEMMENU  originally  meant  "orientation",  then  "to  approach 
hostilely";  hence  nl-te  meant  "approach  of  storm". 

na  is  an  indeterminate  suffix,  but  the  context  shows  that  it 
means  "thy",  so  that  nl-te-na  means  "thyself  (see  na  above). 

2.  dtmm*r  Mu-ul-lil   u-mu-un   na-hm-zu-ka  ....  Se-ir-ma-al 
nl-te-na 
0  Bel,   lord  of  wisdom, supreme  by  thyself! 

dimmer.  ^ne  gjgjj  _^N  here  has  the  value  dimmer.  In  the  great 
bilingual  penitential  Psalm,  K.  2811  (IV  R.  plate  10),  instead  of 
the  single  sign  AN ,  we  have  the  spelling  dim-me-er  (see  lines  3, 
7  and  others).  If  this  were  an  EK  composition,  the  sign  AN  might 
be  dingir,  di-in-gir,  but  in  the  words  u-mu-un  and  se-ir-ma-al 
which  we  have  already  had,  we  have  evidence  that  this  is  an  ES 
composition,  hence  AN  here  is  to  be  read  dimmer. 

Mu-ul-lil:  Bel  has  only  one  name  in  this  hymn;  namely,  Mul- 
lil  In  the  two  tablets,  29644  and  29623,  following  this  tablet, 
Bel  is  called  En-lil  (see  the  colophons).  The  word  Mu-ul-lil  divides 
into  two  parts,  Mu-ul,  which  contracts  into  Mul,  and  Ml. 

Mu-ul:  Mul  is  ES;  En  is  EK.  Both  Mul  and  En  mean  "lord", 
so  that  either  Mul-lil  or  En-lil  means  "lord  of  fulness".  It  is 
probable  that  mul  (wul)  is  cognate  with  en  (el). 

mu  (as  a  value  is  discussed  in  line  1). 

uh  the  sign  is  composed  of  GESPU  and  GUTTU.  The  value 
ul  is  Semitic.  We  shall  meet  below  this  sign  with  the  value  ric 
meaning  "perfect". 

HI:  the  name  of  the  sign  is  KITU.  Ul  in  magic  writings 
means  "demon",  i.  e.,  a  spirit  which  may  be  either  good  or  bad. 
Originally  the  sign  indicated  "structure",  from  which  idea  comes 
the  postpositional  use  of  the  sign  with  the  value  ge.  sdru,  "wind", 
with  the  value  Ul  is  a  secondary  meaning  of  thes  sign. 

■u-mu-un  na-hm-zu-ka  (occurring  in  bine  1 ,  was  discussed 
there).  The  fragments  following  -ka  do  not  give  a  sure  clue  as 
to  what  the  signs  were  before  the  erasure.  After  dimmer  Mu-ul-lil 
perhaps  the  whole  of  the  second  line  was  precisely  like  the  first. 

se-ir-ma  al  nl-te-na  (explained  in  line  1). 

3.  a-a  dimm*r  Mu-ul-lil  u-mu-un-e  kur-kur-ra 
0  father  Bel,  lord  of  the  lands! 

a-a  is  probably  for  ad-da,  ad  meaning  "protector".  Exactly 
how  a-a  comes  to  be  used  in  the  place  of  ad-da  may  not  be 
determined  with  certainty.  The  explanation  may  lie  in  the  relation 
between    "water",    .seed"    and    "father",     a-a   also    seems    to   be  a 


—    27    — 

softened  form  of  ad-da.  a  means  "seed"  or  more  primarily  "water". 
The  sign  is  an  ideographic  picture  of  dripping  water. 

dimmer  Mu-ul-lil  (explained  in  line  2). 

u-mu-un-e  divides  into  the  word  u-mu-un  and  the  prolongation 
vowel  e,  possibly  demonstrative  in  sense  (see  e  farther  on). 

u-mu-un  is  not  elsewhere  in  this  hymn  lengthened  to  u-mu- 
un-e,  but  ii-mu-un  occurs  nine  times. 

kur-kur-ra  is  the  plural  form  of  noun,  kur,  plus  postposition  ra. 

kur-kur:  in  Sumerian  the  general  way  of  denoting  the  plural 
in  nouns  is  by  doubling  the  root  (see  ASK.  p.  140),  whereas  the 
doubled  root  in  a  verb  means  an  intensified  or  causative  stem. 
There  are  five  other  cases  of  doubling  the  root  in  the  hymn:  di-di, 
line  7,  ma-ma,  line  8,  ir-ir,  line  13,  mama,  line  20;  and  da-da, 
line  23. 

kur:  the  sign  KURU  in  the  old  linear  form  represented  pic- 
torially  "mountain  tops".  The  value  kur  has  three  very  common 
Assyrian  equivalents,  sadu,  "mountain",  irsitu,  "earth"  and  mdtu, 
"land",  all  closely  related  to  each  other. 

ra  is  a  common  postposition  signifying  "unto".  Perhaps  ra 
sometimes  serves  merely  as  a  vowel  of  prolongation,  the  r  at  the 
same  time  making  a  double  of  the  final  consonant  of  the  preceding 
word.  In  such  a  case  ra  is  called  a  phonetic  complement,  while 
it  also  helps  to  determine  the  value^  of  the  sign  immediately  pre- 
ceding. To  illustrate,  the  sign  KURU  being  followed  by  RARU 
cannot  be  read  gin  nor  mad.  ra  can  also  be  the  sign  of  the  geni- 
tive (Br.  6367). 

4.  a-a  dimmer  Mu-ul-lil  u-mu-un  dug-ga  zi-da 
0  father  Bel,  lord  of  righteous  command! 

a-a  dimmer  Mu-ul-lil  u-mu-un  (explained  in  lines  1,  2  and  3). 

dug-ga:  dug  is  the  value  of  KAGU  to  be  used  here,  as  is  at 
once  suggested  by  the  phonetic  complement  ga. 

dug:  a  very  common  meaning  of  dug  is  kibUu,  "command" 
(Br.  532). 

ga  is  merely  the  vowel  of  prolongation  a  with  the  final  g  of 
the  preceding  stem. 

si-da:  zi  being  followed  by  da  gives  the  impression  that  it 
should  be  read  zid  with  da  as  a  phonetic  complement.  A  final 
consonant  in  the  first  syllable,  however,  is  not  always  a  necessity. 
The  name  of  the^  temple  of  Nabu  at  Borsippa  is  not  read  E-zid-da, 
but  E-zi-da  or  E-zida. 

zi  here  equals  imnu,  "right".  It  may  sometimes  equal  napistu 
(see  below,  line  25.) 

5.  a-a  dimmer  Mu-ul-lil  siba  sag  gig-ga 

0  father  Bel,  shepherd  of  the  blackheaded! 


—     28    — 

siba  equals  re'tJ  (Br.  5688).  The  sign  is  compounded  from 
PA  and  LU  and  means  "staff-bearer",  since  PA  signifies  "staff"  and 
LU  means  "hold",  "seize".  The  use  of  the  sign  is  confined  almost 
entirely  to  the  idea  of  shepherd  of  animals  and  then  figuratively 
to  that  of  governor  of  men. 

sag:  the  sign  with  the  value  sag,  called  SANGU  or  SAGGD, 
is  the  common  sign  to  represent  "head"  which  is  expressed  in 
Assyrian  either  by  resu  or  kakkadu  (see  Br.  3522  and  3513).  The 
sign  occurs  in  many  compounds. 

gig-ga:  gig  is  the  value  of  MI  suggested  by  the  phonetic 
complement  ga. 

gig:  the  sign  is  composed  of  the  corner  wedge  U  and  the 
sign  TATTAB  and  means  "darkness".  The  sign  really  signifies 
"entering  into  depression",     gi  perhaps  is  a  dialectism  for  mi. 

ga  =  phonetic  complement,  sag  gig-ga  means  a  race  of  men, 
evidently  here  the  Babylonians,  the  people  in  particular  over  whom 
Bel  exercised  rule.  The  term  is  certainly  not  one  of  depreciation. 
It  merely  shows  that  the  Babylonians  were  swarthy.  On  the  other 
hand,  "blackheaded"  may  be  intended  to  mean  the  human  race  in- 
habiting the  earth  in  contradistinction  to  the  bright  celestial  beings 
(see  CDAL.  878).  Cyrus,  in  his  Broken  Cylinder,  seems  to  use 
the  phrase  as  meaning  the  Babylonians.  His  words  are:  niSd  sal- 
mat  kakkadi  sd  u-sd-ak-si-du  ka-ta-a-su.  "The  blackheaded  people 
whom  he  caused  his  hands  to  conquer"  (V  R.  35,  13). 

6.  a-a  dimmer  Mu-ul-lil  i-de  gaba  nlte-na 
0  father  Bel,  the  only  all-seeing  one! 

i-de,  phonetic  representation  of  ide,  which  in  the  EK  dialect 
is  represented  by  the  sign  IGU  with  the  value  igi  which  in  Assyrian 
means  inu,  "eye"  (Br.  4004,  4003  and  9273).  ide  is  ES  for  the 
EK  igi.  We  have  the  sign  IGU  in  the  colophon  where  it  occurs 
with  AU,  "water",  a-ide  meaning  "water  of  the  eye". 

i  is  represented  by  GITTU  ("five").  The  value  i,  however,  is, 
of  course,  entirely  syllabic  here.  Notice  that  there  is  a  slight 
difference  between  the  Babylonian  GITTU  and  the  Assyrian  GITTU. 
In  Assyrian,  GITTU  consists  of  two  wedges  followed  by  three.  In 
Babylonian  it  consists  of  three  followed  by  two,  and  in  the  linear 
form  the  sign  consists  of  three  horizontal  lines  followed  by  two  (see 
AL.  p.  125,  No.  105). 

de  represented  by  IZU  and  having  the  value  bil  means  "fire". 
The  sign  in  its  hieroglyphic  form  is  probably  a  picture  of  building 
a  fire  by  the  friction  of  an  instrument  against  a  piece  of  wood. 
Hence  the  sign  is  properly  composed  of  AM  and  GIS,  AM  re- 
presenting something  having  a  head  and  Glfc>  meaning  "wood".  The 
sign    in    our    text   is  old  Babylonian  and  may  be  found  in  Gudea 


—    29    — 

(Cylinder  B,  Col.  IV,  line  13,  in  Dec.  Plate  34).  Possibly  i-de 
could  be  explained  as  if  i  were  an  abstract  prefix  and  de  as  refer- 
ring to  the  light  of  the  eye,  hence  i-de  means  "eye". 

gaba  is  the  common  word  for  irtu,  "breast"  (Br.  4477).  The 
sign  GABBU  is  a  double  MU-sign  meaning  "fulness".  From  this 
idea  of  "fulness"  we  easily  derive  the  idea  of  "open"  (Br.  4490). 
So  that  ide  gaba  means  "open  eyed"  The  two  MU's  appear  en- 
tirely separate  in  the  Babylonian  form  of  the  sign  as  they  do  not 
in  the  Assyrian  form  (see  TC.  p.  18).  Our  GABBU  is  not  so  old 
as  the  GABBU  of  the  Stele  des  Vautours,  but  is  like  Gudea's 
GABBU  (see  Cylinder  A,  Col.  XXI,  line  25,  in  Dec.  Plate  34).  i-de 
gaba  is  about  equal  to  "omniscient". 

nl-te-na  may  be  rendered  as  in  line  1,  "thyself,"  or  perhaps 
we  could  say  "only". 

7.  a-a  dimmer  Mu-ul-lil  arna  erim-na  di-di 

0  father  Bel,  the  lord  that  executest  judgment  on  thy  enemies! 

ama:  the  meaning  for  AMMU  with  the  value  ama  is  rimu, 
"bull".  AMMU  may  mean  "lord",  belu  (Br.  4543).  In  the  sign 
AMMU  we  have  the  hieroglyphs  for  the  bull's  head  and  the  mountain 
combined.  In  the  oldest  Babylonian  form,  of  course,  lines  are  used 
instead  of  wedges.  In  Assyrian  the  sign  has  been  reduced  to  two 
horizontal  wedges  placed  before  the  sign  DUGU.  AMMU  represents 
"the  bull  of  the  mountains".  In  line  9  we  shall  have  the  sign 
GUTTU  which  represents  "the  bull  not  of  the  mountains",  i.  e.  "the 
domestic  bull"  or  "the  ox".  The  sign  is  the  same  in  form  as  AMMU, 
except  that  the  little  inside  wedges  representing  the  mountains  are 
wanting. 

erim-na:  erim  is  taken  to  be  the  right  value  rather  than  lah, 
because  of  the  following  na  which  serves  as  a  phonetic  complement, 
m  and  n  being  closely  related  because  of  their  similar  indeterminate 
nasal  qualities. 

erim  affords  a  meaning  that  seems  to  suit  the  context,  erim 
must  be  equal  to  the  Assyrian  sdbu  which  must  like  the  Hebrew 
sclba  have  in  it  the  idea  of  "service".  Such  expressions  as  the 
following  bring  out  the  idea  of  "service".  erim-bal-Jcura,  "slave 
employed  at  the  water  wheel"  (OBTR.  Plate  91,  Obv.).  erim-bal- 
gub-ba,  "slave  who  carries  a  hatchet"  (OBTR.  Plate  17,  Obv.). 
A  common  meaning  for  erim  is  "warrior",  but  the  warrior  as 
a  soldier  rather  a  general.  Then  from  the  idea  "soldier  of  the 
enemy",  we  come  to  the  idea  "enemy",  which  seems  to  be  the 
meaning  here. 

na,  while  serving  phonetically,  is  also  here  a  pronominal  suffix. 

di-di  can  equal  kasddu  (Br.  9529  and  9563).  The  judgment 
implied  by  di-di,  accordingly,  may  be  that  executed  on  an  enemy. 


—    30    — 

di-di  is    more    than    pronouncing    sentence.      It   is   inflicting   the 
punishment 

di  may  be  a  value  borrowed  from  the  Assyrian  ddnu,  "to 
judge",  but  this  is  uncertain,  as  such  an  occurrence  implies  Semitic 
influence  which  could  not  have  amounted  to  much  if  this  hymn 
was  written  at  a  very  early  period. 

8.  a-a  dimm*r  Mu-ul-lil  u-nt-la  ma-ma 
0  father  Bel,  the  power  of  the  land! 

u-ne-la  equals  noun  u-rie  =  emuku,  "power"  and  phonetic 
complement  la. 

u:  IGI-DIBBU  might  be  confounded  with  HUL.  It  is  rather 
carelessly  written  here,  it,  we  have  seen  in  line  1,  may  mean 
"lord"  in  the  sense  of  being  "elderly",  u  might  mean  "mountain"; 
if  so  it  would  be  in  the  sense  of  being  an  "ancient  mountain". 
ii  here,  however,  must  be  an  abstract  prefix  (MSL.  p.  XVII).  it,  for 
example,  is  used  as  such  a  prefix  with  tu,  ii-tu  being  equal  to 
"offspring"  (Br.  9470). 

ne:  PIRIKKU  in  passing  from  the  old  Babylonian  form  which 
we  have  in  our  text  meets  with  much  change.  The  form  in  our 
text  comes  near  to  being  that  of  the  oldest  known.  Even  in 
Hammurabi  it  begins  to  take  the  form  of  the  Assyrian  PIRIKKU 
(see  CH.  XLIV.  24.  Plate  LXXXI).  PIRIKKU  with  the  value  gir 
which  is  EK  for  the  ES  ner  is  the  common  sign  for  "foot" 
(Br.  9192).  With  the  meaning  of  "power"  it  generally  has  the 
value  ne  (Br.  9184). 

la:  LALU  here  is  essentially  the  same  as  the  old  linear  picture 
which  may  readily  be  found  in  old  Sumerian  script,  given  also 
by  Delitzsch  (see  AL.  p.  122,  No.  31).  la  means  "fulness"  like 
the  Assyrian  lalu,  but  its  use  in  our  text  is  entirely  phonetic.  We 
should  rather  expect  ra  here.  Note  that  in  line  10,  we  have 
ra  where  we  should  expect  la,  and  in  line  12,  we  have  da- 
ma-al-la  where  the  la  is  regular,  just  as  ra  is  regular  in  kur- 
Jcur-ra  of  line  3. 

ma-ma:  MAMU  in  its  original  form  is  an  old  hieroglyph  re- 
presenting the  earth ,  so  that  "earth"  or  "the  land"  is  a  common 
meaning  for  ma  and  equal  to  the  Assyrian  mdtu  which  probably 
comes  from  Sumerian  ma,  "land",  and  da,  "strong"  =  DADDU  (see 
line  1   for  further  comment). 

9.  nma  nh-a  gu  ne-sig  gan-nu  kt 

The    bull   of  the   pasture ,    the  bull  that  encompassest  the 
productive  land. 

ama,  which  in  line  7  was  rendered  by  "lord",  must  mean  here 
"bull",    as  the  word  nh-a  limits  us  to  this  meaning,     nh-a  means 


—    31    — 

"pasture",  na-a  could  be  taken  as  an  adjective,  descriptive  of  the 
attitude  of  the  bull,  i.  e.,  that  of  lying  down  quietly.  We  have 
na-a  again  in  line  14.     a  is  simply  phonetic  here  (see  line  3). 

nh:  the  sign  for  the  value  nh  has  no  sign-name.  In  almost 
this  form ,  the  sign  is  easily  found  in  the  text  of  Gudea  (see 
Cylinder  B,  Col.  XVI,  line  19,  in  Dec.  35).  The  form  in  our  text 
is  very  near  to  the  original  linear  form  and  differs  much  from  the 
Assyrian.  The  ordinary  meaning  of  nh  is  given  by  the  Assyrian 
rabdsu  "lie  down",  kindred  to  the  Hebrew  rabas. 

gu,  the  value  here  for  GUTTU,  is  commonly  rendered  in 
Assyrian  by  alpu  "ox".  The  sign  represents  the  bull's  head  with 
horns.  Historically  the  sign  has  three  forms,  the  old  Babylonian 
linear  form,  the  old  Babylonian  wedge- form  and  the  Assyrian  wedge- 
form.  The  old  Babylonian  linear  and  wedge-forms  are  the  same, 
except  that  wedges  occur  in  the  latter  where  simple  straight  lines 
appear  in  the  former.  The  Assyrian  form  is  composed  of  two 
horizontal  wedges,  one  upright  wedge  and  two  little  corner  wedges 
(AL.  p.  128,  No.  164).  The  difference  between  GUTTU  aad  AMMU 
is  significant  (see  note  on  line  7). 

ne-sig:  ne-sig-ga  equals  kamu,  "bind"  (Br.  4626).  The  meaning 
"bind"  fits  here. 

ne  is  not  an  unusual  indeterminate  verbal  prefix  (see  MSL. 
p.  XXIX). 

sig  =  PA ,  probably  with  the  value  sig,  may  equal  kamu 
(Br.  5575).  Hence  ne-sig  is  a  verb,  ne  being  the  prefix  and  sig 
the  stem. 

gan-nu:  the  value  gan  is  indicated  by  the  following  nu. 

gan  with  complementary  nu  is  represented  here  by  an  ancient 
form  of  the  sign  which  is  very  different  from  the  Assyrian  form. 
The  meaning  here  must  be  expressed  by  dahddu,  "plenty",  kindred 
to  alidu  (IV  E.  9,  24  a). 

hi:  the  KIKU  of  our  text  is  New -Babylonian  (see  the  Cyrus 
Cylinder,  I  R.  35,  line  4).  The  early  linear  form  is  well  represented 
by  the  wedge-form  of  Hammurabi  (CH.  Col.  I,  line  10,  plate  I). 
A  picture  of  the  earth  was  probably  attempted  in  the  archaic 
linear  form.  It  should  be  noted  that  space  is  represented  con- 
ventionally by  parallel  horizontal  lines  included  in  a  rectangle, 
orientated  to  the  four  quarters  of  the  heavens. 

10.  dimmer  Mu-ul-lil  nin  kar-ra  ki  damal-ra 
0  Bel,  the  bountiful  lord  of  the  broad  land ! 

dimmer  Mu-ullil  (see  line  2  for  notes). 
nin  in  the  sense  of  belu,  "lord",  gives  a  good  context. 
kar-ra  equals  noun  kar  and  postposition  ra;  kar  =  "plenty" 
(see  MSL.  123).     The  text  however  may  be  dam-kar-ra. 


—    32    — 

Note  that  ra  may  be  taken  as  a  postposition  of  the  genitive 
as  well  as  phonetic  complement  (see  on  line  3). 

ki  (see  on  line  9). 

damal-ra  equals  adjective  plus  postposition. 

damal,  ES  for  the  EK  dagal,  with  the  meaning  of  rapsu, 
"extensive"  (Br.  5452).  The  sign  name  is  AMU.  The  sign  is  com- 
posed of  two  signs  one  within  the  other,  PISANNU,  "house",  the 
outer  sign,  and  ANU,  "high",  the  inner  sign,  hence  the  meaning 
"large  space",  "extensive". 

11.  u-mu-un  mu-ud-na  du  sag-ma-al  ki 

The  lord  of  creation,  the  creator,  the  true  head  of  the  land ! 

u-mu-un  (see  line  1  for  note). 

mu-ud-na  may  equal  "creator"  or  "begetter",  just  as  muh-na 
equals  the  Assyrian  a-lid  (IV  R.  9,  32  a).  mu-ud  is  a  phonetic 
representation  of  the  word  mud,  whose  sign  is  MUSEN-DUGU, 
HU  plus  III  (Br.  2273).  The  word  mud  is  equal  to  the  Assyrian 
banu  (Br.  2274). 

du:  here  we  must  let  the  sense  govern  us  in  deciding  on  a 
form  which  may  be  read  either  as  KAK  or  NI.  KAK  with  the  value 
du  equal  to  banu  (Br.  5248)  gives  a  meaning  that  fits  smoothly 
with  what  precedes  and  follows.  In  their  original  forms  KAK,  NI 
and  IR  are  similar  yet  entirely  distinct  signs.  In  the  archaic 
linear  form,  KAK  is  a  triangle  with  one  of  the  angles  pointing  to 
the  right.  NI  is  a  triangle  with  one  of  the  angles  pointing  to  the 
right  and  one  upright  line  passing  through  the  triangle.  IR  also 
is  a  triangle  with  one  of  the  angles  pointing  to  the  right  and 
two  upright  lines  passing  through  the  triangle. 

sag-ma-al  equals  noun  sag,  plus  suffix  ma-al.  It  could  stand 
for  sag-ga  just  as  sag-mal  can  stand  for  sag-ga  (Br.  3595).  sag 
equals  "head"  (as  in  line  5).  ma-al:  if  ma-al  is  taken  a  suffix  (as 
in  line  1),  it  stands  for  the  sign  PISANNU  meaning  Sakdnu,  "establish", 
or  baSU,  "exist",  and  is  ES  for  the  EK  gal. 

ki  (see  line  9). 

12.  u-mu-un  zal  lah-na  ga  nunuz-dm  da-ma-al-la 

The  lord  whose  shining  oil  is  milk  for  an  extensive  progeny! 

u-mu-un  (see  line  1   for  note). 

zal:  NI  means  "oil".  The  Babylonian  KAK,  NI  and  IR  should 
be  distinguished  from  the  Assyrian.  In  Assyrian  the  horizontal 
wedges  are  parallel  and  do  not  come  to  an  angle  at  the  right. 

lah-na:  zal  lah-na  means  "his  shining  oil",  and  the  thought 
appears  to  be  that  B§1  causes  food  to  be  produced  to  sustain 
successive    generations.      His    oil    is    milk    for  many  generations. 


—    33    — 

zal-lah  is  somewhat  like  the  expression  "finest  oil"  found  in  Assyrian 
inscriptions. 

lah:  the  signs  HISSU  and  SABU  find  their  nearest  approach 
to  each  other  in  the  value  lah.  Both  signs  have  this  value  with 
the  meaning  "brightness". 

na  here  is  a  suffix  of  the  third  person ;  sometimes  it  is  second 
person  (see  line  1). 

ga:  our  sign  here  is  the  old  Babylonian  GU  which  with  its 
common  value  ga  means  sizbu,  "milk".  The  archaic  linear  form 
represents  the  teat  of  the  breast,  ga  occurs  often  as  a  phonetic 
complement  (see  line  4). 

nunuz-dm  means  "is  multitudinous",  nunuz:  NUNUZ  in  this 
form  is,  as  Delitzsch  observes  (HW.  p  525b),  New-Babylonian.  In 
Assyrian  it  is  composed  of  SAB  and  HI  and  in  New-Babylonian 
of  SAB  and  SE.  Here  it  is  equal  to  the  Assyrian  lipn,  German 
"Nachkomme". 

dm:  A. AN,  equalling  dm,  is  a  well  recognized  verbal  suffix 
used  like  the  verb  "to  be";  for  instance,  dingir-ra  dm  means  "is 
a  god"  and  gal-la  dm  means  "is  great"  (see  SVA.  p.  56). 

da-ma-al-la  is  composed  of  the  adjective  da-ma-al  and  the 
phonetic  complement  la.  da-ma-al  is  the  phonetic  representation 
in  ES  of  the  sign  AMU  meaning  rapsu  (see  line  10). 

13.  u-mu-un  silim-ma-a-ni  eri  ir-ir 

The  lord  whose  decrees  bind  together  the  city. 

silim-ma-a-ni  means  "his  decree".  Thus,  silim-ma-a  equals 
noun,  plus  phonetic  complement,  plus  vowel  prolongation,  silim: 
we  have  had  the  sign  SARARU  (in  line  7) ,  where  it  was  given 
the  value  di\  here ,  however,  the  phonetic  complement  suggests 
the  choice  of  the  value  silim,  from  which  we  derive  the  meaning 
"decree",  although  "salutation"  is  a  more  primary  meaning  expressed 
by  the  Semitic  value  silim  (from  sulmu).  The  sign  is  apparently 
New-Babylonian. 

ni  is  one  of  the  common  nominal  suffixes  of  the  third  person. 
Note  that  Bel  is  addressed  in  the  third  person  in  this  line,  but 
we  shall  find  him  addressed  in  the  second  person  again  in  line  16. 

eri  is  ES  for  the  EK  uru.  This  value  is  substantiated  by 
the  name  of  the  city  of  Eridu  =  Eri-tu  (see  MSL.  p.  105).  The 
name  of  the  sign  is  ALU.  Our  sign  is  old  Babylonian  and  is  not 
very  different  from  the  hieroglyphic  form  which  is  supposed  to 
represent  a  city  (see  AL.  p.  121,  No.  21).  It  differs  considerably 
from    the  New- Babylonian  ALU  which  is  much  like  the  Assyrian. 

ir-ir  is  an  intensive  form  of  the  verb  and  therefore  may  be 
causative.  Bel  is  supposed  to  have  aided  kings  especially  in  cap- 
turing cities,     ir  may  mean  "bind",  expressed  by  kamu,  but  kamu 

3 


—    34    — 

is  not  so  often  represented  by  IR  as  by  DIBBU  or  LALLU.  Icamu 
may  be  represented  by  PA  (see  line  9).  Although  ir  is  said  to 
be  a  Semitic  value,  it  is  used  in  this  hymn  syllabically  and  is  the 
only  value  of  the  sign  preserved  (see  line  1  and  also  du  in  line  11 
for  further  comment). 

14.  du  nh-a-ni  a  hm-e  gal-la 

Whose    powerful    dwelling-place    (is    the  seat  of)    a  great 
command, 

du:  the  sign  giving  this  value  has  two  origins,  one  of  which 
is  represented  by  the  value  dul,  meaning  "cover"  (Br.  9582).  The 
other  is  represented  by  the  value  du  and  means  "dwelling-place", 
rendered  in  Assyrian  by  subtu  (Br.  9588).  dii  really  means  "pre- 
scribed space". 

nh-a-ni  means  "his  lying-down  place",  nh-a  defines  with  more 
particularity  the  nature  of  the  dwelling  as  "a  lying-down  place", 
"a  permanent  place  of  rest".  Here  we  have  du  nh-a;  above  we 
have  ama  nh-a  (line  9). 

a:  1DU  and  DADDU  come  from  the  same  ideogram  which  is 
the  picture  of  the  hand  and  the  forearm,  the  fingers  pointing  to 
the  left.  The  value  id  is  supposed  to  be  of  Semitic  derivation, 
from  the  root  appearing  in  Assyrian  as  idu,  "hand".  The  sign  IDU 
also  means  "side",  "wing",  "horn",  "power".  Hence  I  render  "power- 
ful" here,  making  it  qualify  dii  nh-a-ni.  The  sign  in  our  text  is 
old  Babylonian ;  yet  it  seems  to  be  a  form  that  is  approaching  the 
Assyrian  form.  TA  is  also  related  to  ID  and  DA  and  is  used  as 
DA  sometimes  is,  as  a  postposition. 

hm-e,  composed  of  prefix  hm  and  stem  e.  hm:  we  have  had 
the  sign  used  phonetically  (line  1).  Here  it  is  undoubtedly  an 
abstract  prefix  (MSL.  p.  XVII),  qualifying  the  following  e.  The 
sign  is  old  Babylonian,  readily  found  in  old  Babylonian  inscriptions. 
It  is  a  composite  sign.  The  enclosure  contains  the  sign  IZU  which 
is  also  composite.  IZU  however,  as  explained  above  (line  6),  means 
"fire".  So  hm  is  primarily  the  "fire  of  love",  hence  the  usual 
meaning  "love". 

e:  it  is  clear  that  e  can  equal  kabu,  "speak"  (Br.  5843  and 
HW.  578a).  Hence  hm-e  must  mean  "speech".  The  sign  is  old 
Babylonian,  as  may  be  seen,  for  instance,  by  examining  Hammurabi. 
It  is  called  EGU.  The  New-Babylonian  form  comes  nearer  to  the 
old  Babylonian  than  the  Assyrian  does.  This  fact  goes  to  show 
that  the  Assyrian  signs  are  as  a  rule  farther  away  from  the  archaic 
forms  than  the  New-Babylonian  signs  are.  The  sign  AU  represented 
"water",  but  the  sign  EGU  represented  the  "waterditch",  "canal". 
How  e  comes  to  mean  kabu  may  perhaps  be  explained  by  its 
relation  to  the  value  i  of  KAGU  which  equals  amdtu,  "word". 


—    35    — 

gal-la:  gal,  "great",  is  often  followed  by  the  phonetic  com- 
plement la. 

15.  kur  dimmer  Babbar-i-ta  kur  dimmer  Babbar-su-sh 

From    the    land    of  the   rising   sun   to    the    land    of  the 
setting  sun! 

kur  (see  on  line  3). 

dimmer  Babbar-e-ta  equals  ideogram  for  "the  sun",  plus  verb 
e  =  "coming  out",  plus  postposition  "from",  dimmer  Babbar  is  the 
ordinary  ideogram  for  Uu  Somas  used  of  "the  sun",  as  well  as  of 
"the  god  Samas".  Babbar  is  a  value  of  HISSU  which  means  "to 
be  white". 

g:  =  two  signs,  UD  and  DU,  equivalent  to  this  value,  meaning 
asu,  "come  out",  or  "go  out".  The  sign  UD  is  a  picture  of  the 
sun,  and  represents  the  rising  sun;  hence  =  "come  forth". 

to  is  a  postposition  meaning  in  this  case  "from",  but  often 
"in,  into".  TA  in  our  text  is  old  Babylonian  and  much  like  the 
linear  form  in  early  tablets.  Nearly  the  same  form  can  be  found 
in  Hammurabi  also.  But  on  the  whole,  the  old  Babylonian,  the 
Assyrian  and  the  New-Babylonian  all  differ  from  each  other  much. 
TA  has  a  close  relation  to  DA  and  ID  (see  on  line  14). 

dimmer  Babbar -su-su  equals  ideogram  for  "the  sun",  plus  su  = 
"going  in",  plus  postposition  "to". 

su  equals  erdbu,  "enter  in".  Ideographically,  SU  means  "bent 
over",  or  "depressed". 

sic  is  a  value  of  KU,  as  a  postposition,  meaning  "unto".  The 
sign  is  of  rectangular  form  and  has  many  values,  consequently  many 
meanings  starting  with  the  idea  "enclosure".  The  governing  force 
of  su  here  reaches  back  over  kur  in  the  middle  of  the  line,  just 
as  the  governing  force  of  ta  goes  back  over  kur  at  the  beginning 
of  the  line. 

The  beautiful  expression  of  this  line  occurs  more  than  once 
in  Sumerian  and  Babylonian  literature.  As  early  as  Lugalziggisi 
it  appears  in  royal  writings.  Lugalziggisi  speaks  of  his  kingdom 
as  extending  "from  the  rising  sun  to  the  setting  sun".  Babbar-e-ta 
(UD.UD.DU.TA)  Babbar-su-su  (UD.SU.KU)  (OBL  No.  87,  Col.  II, 
12  and  13).  And  Esarhaddon  in  Cylinder  A  says  that  "From  the 
rising  sun  to  the  setting  sun  he  marched  without  a  rival",  ul-tu 
si-it Uu  Sam-si  a-di  e-nb  ilu  Sam-si  it-tal-lak-u-ma  ma-hi-ra  la  i-su-u 
(I  E.  45,  Col.  I,  7  and  8). 

16.  kur-ra  u-mu-un  nu-um-ti  za-e  u-mu-un  ab-da-me-en 

0  mountain,  the  lord  of  life,  thou  the  lord  indeed  art! 

kur-ra  (see  on  line  3). 
u-mu-un  (see  on  line  1). 

3* 


—    36    — 

nu-um-ti  occurs  also  in  the  next  line  and  no  doubt  equals 
baldtu,  "life". 

nU'Um  seems  to  be  an  abstracting  prefix  of  the  nature  of 
nam  as  in  nam-ti-la  =  baldtu  (Br.  1697).  nu-um-ti,  however, 
may  be  a  phonetic  representation  of  nim,  also  written  num.  which 
means  elitu,  "height"  (Br.  1982  and  9011).  According  to  this  view, 
nu-um-ti  might  mean  "the  acme  of  life",  just  as  nam-ti  equals  "the 
fortune  of  life";  hence  "life  in  general".  Or  it  might  be  suggested 
that  num  is  really  for  nam,  as  a  is  known  to  differentiate  some- 
times into  u;  ga  for  instance  becomes  gu  (MSL.  p.  X). 

ti  equals  baldtu,  "life",  and  has  its  fuller  form  in  tin,  also 
equal  to  baldtu  "live". 

za-e  equals  atta,  "thou"  (Br.  11762,  also  ASK.  p.  139). 

ab-d.a-m.e-en  equals  "thou  thyself  art".  The  form  consists  of 
verbal  prefix,  infix  and  verb,  as  follows:  ah,  beiDg  an  indeterminate 
prefix,  may  therefore  be  used  of  the  second  person  (MSL.  p.  XXV). 
ESU  is  an  old  Babylonian  sign  pictorially  representing  "enclosed 
space",  hence  the  meaning  of  "enclosure".  It  means,  with  the  value 
e"§,  "house",  and,  with  the  value  ab,  "sea",  da  is  like  a(ID)  (line  14), 
ideographically  represented  by  the  picture  of  the  hand  and  forearm 
(line  4).  It  means  "side",  also  "strength".  It  is  sometimes  a  re- 
flexive verbal  infix  (MSL.  p.  XXIV).  me-en  equals  baiu  (Br.  10404). 
me  also  equals  basu  (Br.  10361)  and  the  longer  me-a  equals  basu 
(Br.  10459).  en,  therefore,  is  not  an  essential  part  of  the  word 
which  means  "be",  me-en  has  no  connection  with  ma-e,  the 
personal  pronoun  of  the  first  person,  men,  in  fact,  can  be  used 
of  the  second  person  and  even  of  the  third  as  well.  The  defining 
pronoun  za-e  here  compels  us  to  take  me-en  in  the  second  person. 

Reverse 

17.  dimmer  Mu-ul-lil  kur-kur-ra  ga-sd-an  nu-um-ti  nin-zu  ga- 
sd-an  ab-da{-me-en) 
O  Bel  of  the  lands,  lord  of  life,  lord  of  wisdom,  lord  in- 
deed thou  art! 
dimmer  MvhuI-M  (see  line  2  for  note). 
kur-kur-ra  (see  line  3  for  note). 

ga-sd-an,  like  u-mu-un  (line  1),  equals  bclu,  "lord",  and  is  a 
phonetic  form  of  gasan  which  is  usually  represented  by  GESPU- 
GUNl)  (Br.  6989  and  MSL.  p.  129).  ga  isv  only  a  syllable  here 
(see  lines  4  and  12  for  further  comment).  SA  is  an  old  sign;  here 
it  is  old  Babylonian  and  represents  closely  the  linear  form.  The 
sign  is  much  used  in  Assyrian  with  the  syllabic  value  sd,  especially 
in  the  place  of  NITtF(sa)  which  is  often  a  relative  pronoun. 
nu-um-ti  (see  on  line   16). 


—    37     — 

nin-zu  means  "lord  of  wisdom",  ran  equals  belli  (Br.  10985; 
see  line  10).     On  zu  (see  line  1). 

ab-da  should  evidently  be  ab-da-me-en  (see  line  16). 

18.  e-lum  nl  an-na  a-kad  za-da  sd  mu-e-da-mal 

0  mighty  one,  dread  of  heaven,  royal  one  indeed  thou  art! 

e-lum  equals  kabtu  (Br.  5888),  and  appears  to  stand  for  elim 
which  also  equals  kabtu  (Br.  8885).  lum  is  clearly  syllabic  here, 
but  the  sign,  old  Babylonian  here,  is  indicative  of  plant-growth, 
consisting  of  waving  lines. 

nl  equals  puluhtu,  "fear",  here  (see  on  line  1). 

an-na:  an  equaling  same*,  "heavens",  is  a  value  of  ANU  at- 
tested by  the  phonetic  complement  na.  The  sign  ANU  in  our 
text  is  old  Babylonian  and  is  the  same  as  the  original  ideogram 
of  the  star,  except  that  wedges  have  taken  the  place  of  straight 
lines.  In  our  Hymn  to  Adad  (CT.  XV,  Tablet  29631)  the  transition 
from  the  Babylonian  to  the  Assyrian  ANU  may  be  clearly  seen 
all  on  one  page,  wedges  however  are  used,  not  straight  lines. 
There  is  the  original  form,  there  is  the  Assyrian  form,  and  there 
are  intermediate  forms  enough  to  show  how  the  Babylonian  star 
passes  into  the  Assyrian  ANU.  The  NANU  of  our  text  may  be 
found  exactly  in  the  Brick  of  Ur-Gur  (CT.  XXI,  Tablet  90000, 
plate  8).  In  Nebuchadrezzar  I.  (CT.  IX,  Tablet  92987),  the  internal 
horizontals  have  disappeared ,  but  the  sign  has  not  fully  reached 
the  Assyrian  NANU. 

a-kad:  perhaps  this  word  a-kad  is  a  loan-word  from  the 
Assyrian  ekdu.  It  is  better  to  take  a  as  a  vocalic  abstract  prefix 
and  to  consider  kad  as  the  root.  There  are  three  signs  that  give 
this  value  kad  (Br.  1364,  1365  and  2700).  The  sign  GADU  means 
kitu,  "clothing  material"  (Br.  2704  and  WE  361;  see  also  MSL. 
p.  114).  The  context  alone  suggests  here  that  some  idea  of  power 
may  be  expected  in  the  word  a-kad.  Perhaps  royal  power  is 
meant,  which  could  be  symbolically  represented  by  a  garment, 
especially  a  royal  robe. 

za-da  no  doubt  stands  for  za-e-da  and  would  be  equal  to 
"thou  thyself",  "thou  indeed"  (see  line  16). 

sd  in  Sumerian  may  represent  the  Assyrian  lu,  "verily",  (Br.  7047). 
sd,  simply  as  a  syllable,  occurs  above  (see  line  17). 

mu-e-da-mal  is  a  verb,  mu  is  an  indeterminate  verbal  prefix. 
Whether  it  is  first,  second  or  third  person  may  be  determined  by 
the  context.  Here,  however,  the  za-da  of  the  context  shows  mu 
to  be  second  person  (see  on  line  1).  e  here  is  a  verbal  infix, 
corroborative  in  character  (see  MSL.  p.  XXIV,  also  lines  3  and  14). 
da  is  also  a  verbal  infix  (see  fine  16).  mal  equals  basu,  "to  be", 
(Br.  2238). 


—    38    — 

19.  dtmmey  Mu-ul-lil  u  en(?)  dimmer-ri-ne  za-da  3d  mu-e-da-mal 
0  Bel,  very  lord  of  gods  thou  indeed  art! 

u  equals  belu,  "lord",  and  is  a  very  common  ideogram  for 
"lord"  (see  u-muun,  line  1).  en  also  equals  belu,  "lord",  but 
evidently  the  text  is  imperfect  at  this  point  (see  line  16,  on  en). 

dimmer-ri-ne  means  "gods",  ri  is  a  phonetic  complement;  ne 
is  a  purely  phonetic  plural  ending  used  both  for  nouns  and  verbs 
(see  SVA.  p.  69). 

za-da  id  mu-e-da-mal  (see  line  18). 

20.  a-a  dimmer  Mu-ul-lil  mu-lu  gu  md-md-me-en  mu-lu  $e  md- 

md-me-en 
0  father  Bel,  who  causest  vegetation  to  sprout,  who  causest 
grain  to  grow! 

a-a  dimmer  Mu-ul-lil  (see  on  lines   2  and  3). 

mu-lu  is  a  phonetic  representation  of  mulu  (Br.  6398).  mulu 
is  ES;  EK  would  be  gulu  (Br.  6395).  mu-lu  frequently  means  the 
Assyrian  relative  pronoun  §a  (Br.  6406). 

gu:  GU  is  a  composite  sign  whose  original  parts  are  NI  and 
BE  and  which  means  "full  of  death".  According  to  the  derivation, 
GU  then  may  be  read  as  "destruction"  (MSL.  p.  156).  GU  has  also 
an  Assyrian  equivalent  gu  meaning  "plant",  "vegetation"  (Br.  11138 
and  HW.  p.  582).  The  consideration  of  GU  as  meaning  "vegetation" 
looks  only  on  the  perishable  side  of  the  object.  The  sign  has  few 
values.   Here,  it  is  clearly  old  Babylonian  resembling  the  linear  form. 

md-md-me-en  here  equals  asii,  "go  out",  used  of  plants  and 
trees  Br.  4303).  The  more  generally  used  word  for  asu  is  c  (UD.DU) 
(see  on  line  15). 

md:  the  name  of  the  sign  is  NISIGU  (see  note  on  Heir,  line  1). 
The  sign  is  old  Babylonian  here,     mc-en  (see  on  line  16). 

Se:  the  sign  is  old  Babylonian  here.  Its  most  common  Assyrian 
equivalent  is  §au ,  "grain"  (see  line  1).  If  we  gave  U-UM  the 
broader  meaning  of  "production",  at  the  same  time  reading  GU  as 
"destruction",  we  would  have  the  fine  antithetical  parallelism:  "0 
father  Bel,  who  bringest  forth  destruction  and  who  bringest  forth 
production."  Such  a  reading  would  give  quite  correctly  the  course 
of  thought,  for  Bel  is  god  of  the  atmosphere,  lord  of  the  clouds, 
and  commander  of  the  rain-storms  which  are  either  sources  of 
growth  on  earth  or  of  ruin.  On  the  other  hand,  the  translation 
which  I  have  adopted  seems  perhaps  preferable. 

21.  dimmer  Mu-ul-lil  me-lam-zu  gur-ra  ha-mu-ni-ib-{  )-ne-ne 
0  Bel,  before  the  great  glory  may  they  be  (in  fear?)! 

me-lam-zu:  from  the  combination  of  ME  and  LAM  we  get 
the  Assyrian  melammu,  "glory",     me:    MIMU  with  the  value  i$ib 


—    39    — 

means  ellu,  "bright"  (see  line  16  for  further  comment),  lam:  one 
of  the  values  of  IZU,  seems  to  equal  isdtu,  "flame",  but  the  usual 
value  of  IZU  for  isdtu  is  bil  (see  line  6,  de),  me-lam  literally 
means  "bright  flame",  zu,  besides  being  an  ideogram  for  idu, 
"know",  is  the  usual  pronominal  suffix  of  the  second  person  singular 
(see  on  zu,  line  1),  as  in  this  passage. 

gur-ra  gives  a  good  sense,  though  the  signs  resemble  KU 
and  RA  giving  su-ra,  a  double  postposition.  The  text  however  is 
defective,  gur-ra  equals  kabtu  (Br.  10183),  making  the  phrase 
read  "before  thy  great  glory",  giir:  KIL  also  has  the  value  gurun 
equal  to  ebnu,  "fruit"  (Br.  10179).     ra  (see  on  line  3). 

ha:  KUA  is  the  usual  Sumerian  sign  used  with  a  verb,  to 
give  a  precative  sense  as  here.  The  sign  here  is  old  Babylonian 
and  resembles  the  pictorial  form  which  is  clearly  that  of  "a  fish" 
(see  on  line  22).  The  original  pictorial  figure  is  one  of  the  few 
to  be  found  in  which  curved  lines  predominate. 

mu-ni-ib-{)-ne-ne:  strangely  enough  the  verb  seems  to  be 
omitted  in  the  sentence  of  this  line.  Perhaps  the  omission  is  due 
to  scribal  error,  rnu  is  a  verbal  prefix  of  the  third  person  here 
(see  on  line  18).  ni-ib  is  a  verbal  infix  (see  MSL.  p.  XXXIII). 
The  infixes  are  generally  personally  indeterminate.  They  incorporate, 
between  the  verbal  prefixes  that  represent  the  subject  and  the 
verb,  the  object  in  pronominal  form,  whether  it  be  direct  or  in- 
direct, ni-ib  really  equals  "before  it".  The  translation  disregards 
ni-ib  for  the  sake  of  smoothness,  ni  (see  on  line  13).  ib  stands 
to  ni  as  postposition  to  pronoun.  The  sign  for  ib  is  old  Babylonian; 
it  is  really  composite  and  signifies  "side",  ne-ne  is  a  personal 
pronoun  of  the  third  person  (see  ASK.  p.  139).  ne  is  syllabic  here 
(see  de,  line  6,  about  its  ideographic  value;  also  lam,  line  21). 

22.  hu-e  an-na  ha-e  pu-ra  sa-nl  ma-niib-si 

The  birds  of  the  heavens  and  the  fish  of  the  sea  are  filled 
with  fear  of  thee! 

hu-e  equals  issuru,  "bird",  hu:  simple  hu  is  used  elsewhere 
for  issuru.  The  sign  MU§ENNU  here  is  old  Babylonian.  The 
archaic  form  is  supposed  to  be  the  picture  of  a  bird  in  flight. 
musen,  another  value  of  MUSENNU,  also  means  "bird",  e  is  not 
a  necessary  part  of  the  word,  being  here  only  a  vowel  of  prolongation 
probably  indicating  the  definite  article  (see  lines  3  and  14). 

an-na  (see  on  line  18). 

ha-e  equals  nunu,  "fish",  ha  alone  equals  nunu  (see  online  21). 
e  serves  the  same  purpose  as  in  hu-e. 

pu-ra  equals  apsu,  "sea",  pu  alone  equals  apsu  (Br.  10217). 
ra  may  be  taken  as  a  sign  of  the  genitive  (see  on  line  3). 

sa-nl   equals    "in   the   midst    of  fear",     sh:   SAGU,    with  the 


—    40    — 

value  sh,  equal  to  libbu  or  kirbu,  is  one  of  the  few  Sumerian 
prepositions.  It  precedes  its  object  as  a  noun  in  the  construct 
state,     nl  (see  on  line  18). 

ma-ni-ib-si  consists  of  prefix,  infix  and  verb,  ma  is  not  a 
very  common  verbal  prefix.  It  is  indeterminate,  but  the  sense 
requires  the  third  person  (see  MSL.  p.  XXIV).  ni-ib  is  second 
person  here  (see  on  line  21).  si:  the  most  common  meaning  of 
si  is  malu,  *fill".  The  sign  is  Babylonian  and  can  be  found  either 
in  the  Code  of  Hammurabi  or  the  Cyrus  Cylinder. 

23.  a-a  dimm*r  Mu-ul-lil-li  da-da   mah   mu-e-gin   sag-e-zi  si- 

ba-e  e-nab 
0  father  Bel,  in  great  strength  thou  goest,    the  head  of 
life,  the  shepherd  of  the  stars! 

a-a  dimmer  Mu-ul-lil-li  (see  on  line  2).  li  is  merely  phonetic 
complement.  We  might  give  it  an  ideographic  value  and  connect 
it  with  da-da  and  render  'abundant  in  strength".  The  common 
meaning  of  LILU  is  ra$u,  'abound".  With  the  value  gub,  how- 
ever, it  means  ellu,  "bright".  The  sign  is  old  Babylonian,  yet  quite 
different  from  the  archaic  linear  form. 

da-da  means  "strength"  (see  on  line  16). 

mah  has  three  common  Assyrian  equivalents,  ma'adu,  "many", 
rabu,  "great"  and  siru,  "high",  mah  here  equals  rabu.  There  is 
still  another  Assyrian  equivalent,  mahhu  which  must  be  a  loan- 
word in  Semitic. 

mu-e-gin  as  prefix,  infix  and  verb  means  "he  indeed  goes". 
mu-e  (see  on  line  18).  gin  is  a  value  of  the  sign  ARAGUBBU 
(see  e,  line  15). 

sag-e-zi  equals  "head"  (line  5)  plus  vowel  of  prolongation 
(line  3)  and  "of  life"  (line  4).  ZITU  equals  napistu  as  well  as 
imnu  and  Jcinu. 

si-ba-e  divides  into  siba  and  e.  si-ba  is  the  same  as  siba 
(line  5),  only  here  the  word  is  given  syllabically  rather  than  ideo- 
graphically.     e  is  a  vowel  prolongation  (as  in  line  3). 

e-nab  is  naturally  treated  as  though  e  were  a  vocalic  prefix 
and  nab  the  root,  e  as  an  abstract  prefix,  no  doubt,  is  possible 
(MSL.  p.  XVII).  nab:  instead  of  NABBU,  perhaps  the  sign  is  ANA- 
E§§EKU  with  the  last  component  omitted;  then  the  value  should 
be  mul,  equal  to  kakkabdni,  "stars",  and  the  clause  reads:  "shepherd 
of  the  stars",  e  may  equal  mu  "water"  (see  line  14),  and  nab  may 
equal  Samu,  "heaven" ;  then  we  have  the  reading:  "shepherd  of  the 
water  of  heaven". 

24.  u-mu-un  lea  na-am-gd  iz-ba  eriga  mu-e-gin  gin  si-ti su-me-a 
0  lord,  the  mouth  of  production  thou  openest,  as  a  prolific 

city  thou  goest,  the  reed  of  the  fulness  of  life  thou  art ! 


—    41    — 

iL-mu-un  (line  1). 

ka:  KAGU  here  is  a  noun  with  the  value  ka  equal  to  pu, 
•mouth",  (Br.  538).  The  sign  originally  represented  the  head,  and 
its  first  meaning  was  gu  equal  to  kibu.  The  sign  is  old  Babylonian 
(see  on  lines  1  and  4). 

na-am-gd  is  a  noun,  na-am  is  an  abstract  prefix  (line  1). 
gd  equals  sakdnu,  'cause  to  be",  (Br.  5421).  The  sign  is  PISANNU. 
We  have  had  the  sign  phonetically  represented  by  ma-al  (line  11) 
used  as  a  suffix.     Here  gd  is  not  a  suffix,  but  the  root. 

iz-ba  is  a  verb,  iz  is  an  indeterminate  prefix,  shown  by  the 
context  to  be  of  the  second  person,  ba  equals  pitu,  "open".  The 
sign  is  old  Babylonian.    The  archaic  form  of  tbe  sign  signified  "divide". 

eri  (see  on  line  13). 

ga  (see  line  12).  ga  can  be  used  as  an  adjective  meaning 
"prolific",  one  of  the  derived  ideas  of  ga  as  "milk". 

mu-e  gin  (see  line  23). 

gin  equals  kanu,  "reed".  The  sign  is  sometimes  followed  by 
the  phonetic  complement  na.     The  sign  is  old  Babylonian. 

si  equals  "fulness"  (see  on  line  22). 

ti-su  means  "unto  life",  ti  (see  line  16);  the  sign  here,  how- 
ever, really  resembles  BALA  which  primarily  means  "breaking  into". 
Then  we  have  the  derived  meaning  palu,  "weapon",  then  "insignia 
of  royal  authority",  and  consequently  "rule",  "government".  If  we 
read  bal  instead  of  ti,  then  Bel  is  "a  full  reed  unto  royalty",  which 
makes  little  sense,     su  (see  line  15). 

me-a  is  the  same  as  me-en  (see  on  line  16).  a  is  phonetic  (see 
on  line  9). 

25.  a-a  dimmer  Mu-ul-lil  sag  zi  sag  ne-la  su  ti  ba-ni-ib-ag 

0  father  Bel,  the  head  of  life,  the  head  of  strength,  the 
power  of  life  thou  makest  thyself! 

aa  dimmer  Mu-ul-lil  (see  lines  2  and  3).     sag  (see  line  5). 

zi  equals  napistu  like  ti  (see  line  16,  also  23).  ni-la  (see 
on  line  8). 

su  equals  kdtu,  "hand".  The  sign  also  has  a  value  kdd  which 
is  evidently  derived  from  the  Semitic  kdtu. 

ti  (see  on  line  24).  If  we  read  the  sign  as  TIL,  then  Bel  is 
"the  power  of  life".  If  we  read  BALA,  then  Bel  is  "the  power 
of  royalty",  signifying  perhaps  that  royal  authority  is  vested  in  Bel. 

ba-ni-ib-ag  is  a  verb,  ba  is  an  indeterminate  verbal  prefix, 
but  is  much  used  for  the  second  person  (MSL.  p.  XXVI).  ni-ib 
(see  on  line  21).    ag  equals  epesu,  "make".    The  sign  is  old  Babylonian. 

26.  su-gil  nis-ia  mu-bi  im 

Altogether  there  are  twenty -five  lines  in  the  tablet. 


—    42    — 

Zu-gil  equals  napharu,  "what  is  collected",  "totality",  entirety". 
iii  is  a  prefix  to  the  causative  stem  (see  on  line  25).  gil  equals 
pahdru,  "collect". 

niil-la:  the  signs  for  the  numerals  twenty  and  five  are  the 
same  as  in  Assyrian,  nw  is  the  Sumerian  numeral  for  "twenty". 
ia  is  the  Sumerian  numeral  for  "five". 

mu-bi  im:  mu-bi  equals  "his  name",  each  line  of  the  Hymn 
being  considered  a  name  of  Bel.  In  our  translation  we  may  read 
"its  lines",  im,  the  same  sign  as  nl  (line  1).  im  is  sometimes 
equal  to  titu,  "clay",  or  duppu,  "tablet". 

27.  gr(A.§I)  lim(b)-ma 
Hymn  of  praise. 

2r  is  a  value  derived  from  two  signs,  A  and  SI,  taken  together. 
The  most  common  meaning  of  the  value  is  bikitu,  "lamentation", 
or  "song"  (see  i-de,  line  6). 

lim-ma:  the  phonetic  complement  ma  indicates  that  the  pre- 
ceding value  should  end  with  m.  Dr.  Lau  regards  this  as  the 
sign  lib{m)  =  kuru  "woe",  (Br.  7271);  hence  er-lim-ma  would  mean 
a  penitential  psalm. 


Chapter  II 

Tablet  13930,  Plates  16  and  17,  Hymn  to  Sin 

Obverse 

1.  ma-gur(UAR)  azag  an-na  §e-ir-ma-al  n\(Vb£)-te-na 
0  shining  ship  of  the  heavens,  majestic  alone ! 

2.  a-a  dimmer  Sis-ki  ii-mu-un-e  Sis-unu-ki-ma 
0  father  Nannar,  lord  of  Ur! 

3.  a-a  dimmtr  8is-ki  ii-mu-un-e  E(BJTyner-nu-gdl(IG) 
0  father  Nannar,  lord  of  E-gi&sirgal! 

4.  a-a  dimmer  Sis-ki  u-mu-un  dimmer  AS-suh-ud 
0  father  Nannar,  lord  of  Namrasit! 

5.  u-mu-un  d™™*  Sis-kipi-mu  sag  din9ir  Em-lil-ld 
0  lord  Nannar,  chief  son  of  Bel! 

6.  sig(DlRlG)-ga-zu-ne  sfg(D]R\G)-ga-zu-ne 
When  thou  art  full,  when  thou  art  full, 

7.  i-de(NE)  a-a-zu  i-de(NE)  dimmer  Mu-ul-lil-ra  Se-ir-ma-al-la-zu-ne 
When  before  thy  father,  before  Bel  thou  art  sovereign, 


—    43    — 

8.  a-a  dimmer  Sis-ki  se-ir-ma-al-la-zu-ne  gaba  zi(g)-ga-zu-ne 

0  father  Nannar,    when  thou  art  sovereign,   when  thou  liftest 
up  the  breast, 

9.  ma-gur(H.AR)  an-shg(LlB)-ga  sig(DlRIG)-ga  se-ir-ma-al-la-zu-ne 
0  ship    in  the  midst  of  the  heavens,    when  thou  art  full  and 

sovereign, 

10.  a-a  dimmer  Sis-ki  za-e  es(AB)  azag-su(KU)  pd\d)-a-zu-ne 

0  father  Nannar,  thou,  when  thou  speakest  to  the  shining  house, 

11.  a-a  dimmer  Sis-ki  ma-dim  %a(A.MI.A)  sfg(DmiG)-ga-zu-ne 

0  father  Nannar,    when  like  a  ship  on  the  tide  thou  art  full, 

12.  sig(DlRIG)-ga-zu-ne   sig(DIRlG)-ga-zu-ne   za-e   stg(DIRIG)-ga- 

zu-ne 
When  thou  art  full,  when  thou  art  full,  thou,  when  thou  art  full, 

13.  sfg(DlRlG)-ga-zu-ne  bi-sag-a-zu-ne  za-e  sig(DIRlG)-ga-zu-ne 
When  thou  art  full,  when  thou  speakest  favorably,  thou  when 

thou  art  full, 

14.  bi-sag-a  ru(UL)-ti-a-zu-ne  za-e  sig(DlR\G)-ga-zu-ne 

When  thou  speakest  graciously  and  engenderest  life,  thou,  when 
thou  art  full! 

15.  a-a  <Hmmer  Sis-ki  ltd  damal  hd-ne-ra  sal-dug(KA)-ga-zu-ne 

0  father  Nannar  of  extensive  progeny,  when  thou  speakest  to 
that  progeny, 

16.  a-azu  ide(Sl)  hid-la  mu-e-si-inmas  sal-zi  ma-ra  ni-in-gu(KA) 
Thy  father  discerns  the  joyful  face  and  speaks  life  to  the  land. 

17.  e  i-i  lugal-ra  u{d)  (UD)-de(NE)-as  e  mu-un-$(U~D.DU) 

As  an  exalted  royal  command,  daily  he  causes  the  word  to  go  forth! 

18.  dtmmer  Mu-ul-lil-li  mu-du-ru  u-sud-du  su-za  ma-rani-in-ru(UL) 
Bel  with  the  sceptre  of  distant  days  exalts  thy  hand  over  the  land. 

19.  8is-unu-kl-ma  mh-gur(RAR)  azag-ga  pa(d)-a-zu-ne 
When  in  Ur,  0  shining  ship,  thou  speakest, 

20.  .  .  dimmer  Nu-dim-mud-e  sal-dug(K.A)-ga-zu-ne 
When  to  .  .  Ea  thou  speakest, 

21 [pa(d)]-a-zu[-ne] 

When thou  speakest, 

Reverse 

22 : 

23 lal  a  im[-si] 

with  water  is  filled. 


—    44    — 

24 gi  a  im-si 

with  water  is  rilled. 

25.  k?(A.TU) e  a  tm-si  ^mmar  [Sis-^-Jcam] 

The  river is  filled  with  water  by  Nannar. 

26.  azaggildik^^ud-kib-nun-TM-ge^l^aim-siidimmer^ig.ki.kam] 
The  bright  Euphrates  is  filled  with  water  by  Nannar. 

27.  i<£(A.TU)  nu  e-bi  ldh-e  a  im-si  dimmer  Su}-ki-kam 
The  empty  river  is  filled  with  water  by  Nannar. 

28.  sug  mah  sug  ban(T\JR)-da  a  im-si  dimmer  Sis-ki-kam 

The    large   marsh ,    the    little    marsh    is    filled    with    water    by 
Nannar. 

29.  gr(A.SI)   Um(LlB)-ma  dimmer  ^_2U 
Penitential  Psalm  to  En-zu. 

This  beautiful  and  interesting  hymn  begins  with  a  picturesque 
and  lordly  epithet  of  the  god  whose  full  face  so  often  shone  upon 
the  worshipper  night  by  night.  His  fatherly  nature  and  his  full- 
orbed  glory  are  dwelt  upon  in  adoring  and  glowing  terms.  The 
name  of  bis  city  and  temple  are  mentioned.  His  power  to  lighten 
the  world  is  acknowledged.  His  peculiar  relation  of  "son  to  Bel" 
is  announced.  The  phenomenon  of  his  appearance  in  the  heavens 
as  the  full  moon  is  described  to  us  from  several  points  of  view. 
This  is  the  famous  Nannar,  dwelling  in  the  temple  of  E-gissirgal 
at  the  ancient  city  of  Ur.  The  sacred  ship,  becoming  a  peculiar 
emblem  in  Babylonian  worship,  symbolized  several  important  ideas 
connected  with  Nannar's  transit  through  the  heavens  by  night  or 
during  the  month.  Perhaps  Nannar  was  in  the  beginning  a  water- 
god.     His  power  over  the  waters  is  graphically  described. 

Obverse 

1.  mh-gur  azag  an-na  se-ir-ma-al  nl-te-na 

0  shining  ship  of  the  heavens,  majestic  by  thyself! 

mh-gur  is  a  boat  of  crescent  form.  Sin  is  a  man  sitting  in 
the  half  circle  of  the  moon  and  sailing  across  the  firmament  of 
the  heavens  as  in  a  majestic  ship,  ma:  the  sign  MU  was  originally 
pictorial  and  represented  the  rudder  of  the  ship.  The  sign  of  our 
tablet  is  New-Babylonian  and  can  be  found  in  the  inscriptions  of 
Nebuchadrezzar  II.  It  is  half  way  between  the  old  pictorial  and 
the  usual  Assyrian  MU.  gur:  the  sign  HAR  probably  refers  to 
the  body  of  the  ship  as  "an  enclosure",  or  more  particularly  to  "the 
crescent  form"  of  the  ship,  since  HAR  means  'circular  enclosure". 
The  HAR  of  our  text  is  much  like  the  linear  form  found  in  the 
Utile  dcs  Vautours. 


—    45    — 

azag  equals  ellu,  "shining",  (Br.  9890).  The  sign  also  has  the 
value  ku  with  the  meaning  ellu.  azag,  'shining",  refers  to  the 
moon  and  the  moon  looks  like  a  ship. 

an-na  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  18). 

se-ir-ma-al  nl-te-na  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  1).  The  ideas  of 
these  two  words  find  their  way  into  the  first  line  of  the  Asur- 
banipal  Hymn  to  Sin,  K.  2861,  (IV  R.  9).  se-ir-ma-al  appears 
especially  as  ner-gal  (s-n  and  m-g)  and  nl-te-na  as  as-ni  mah-hm ; 
e-dis-si-su  si-i-ru. 

2.  a-a  dimmer  Sis-ki  u-mu-un-e  Sis-unu-ki-ma 
0  father  Nannar,  lord  of  Ur! 

a-a  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  3). 

dimmer  ^{g.ki  js  the  most  common  Sumerian  name  of  the  god 
Sin,  and  means  "brother  of  the  land".  Sin  was  probably  looked 
upon  as  "the  helper  of  earth".  dimmer {see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  2). 
Sis  equals  ahu,  "brother",  (Br.  6437).  SIS  sometimes  has  the  value 
uru,  especially  when  it  means  nasdru,  "keep".  The  SIS  of  our 
hymn  is  New-Babylonian,  but  is  not  essentially  different  from  the 
SIS  of  Gudea.     ki  (see   Hymn  to  Bel,  line  9). 

u-mu-un-e  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  3). 

isis-unu-ki-ma  means  "of  the  brother's  dwelling  place".  Sis 
means  "brother",  unu  equals  subtu,  "dwelling",  (Br.  4792).  ma, 
perhaps,  can  be  taken  as  a  sign  of  the  genitive,  being  dialectic  for 
ga,  which  is  for  ge,  one  of  the  values  of  KIT  (see  MSL.  pp.  XI  and 
XVI).  Perhaps  we  ought  to  read  this  word  Uru-um-ki-ma,  taking 
the  other  value  of  SIS  and  also  reading  um  instead  of  unu.  In 
texts  of  OBI.  it  would  appear  that  UNU  is  closely  related  to  UM 
as  well  as  to  AB. 

3.  a-a  dimmer  gfoJH  u-mu-un-e  t(BIT)-ner-nu-gdl(lG) 
0  father  Nannar,  lord  of  E-gi§sirgal ! 

a-a  dimmer  Sjg.ki  u-mu-un-e  (see  line  2). 

E-ner-nu-gdl  is  not  the  usual  spelling.  The  more  common 
form  is  E-gis-sir-gal.  Our  E(BIT)-ner(N'ER)-nu(8\J)-gdl(lG)  which 
also  occurs  in  Hammurabi  (for  example,  in  CH.  Col.  II,  line  21, 
Plate  II)  isvdialectic  for  E(BlT)-gis(lZ)-sir(SlR)-gal{GAL).  £(BIT)- 
gii(lZ)-sir(SlR)-gal(GAL)  is  the  spelling  found  in  the  Asurbanipal 
Hymn.  In  the  inscription  of  the  Clay  Cylinder  of  Nabonidus  found 
at  Ur  (Col.  I,  line  30) ,  the  spelling  is  E(BIT)-gis(lZ)-sir(SIR)-gal- 
(GAL),  but  the  margin  has  the  spelling  E(BIT)-gis{lZ)-nu(N\J)- 
gdl(lG).  E  equals  bitu,  "house",  (Br.  6238).  ner  evidently  stands 
for  kis.  These  two  values,  ner  and  ki's,  were  represented  by  the 
same  sign  in  old  Babylonian;  namely,  PIRIKKU.  From  the  sign 
PIRIKKU,    there  developed  in  Assyrian  another  sign,  whose  chief 


—     46     — 

value  is  kis  with  the  meaning  kiSsatu.  The  sign  here  then  should 
have  the  value  kis,  or  in  old  Babylonian  gih,  which  is  also  one 
of  the  values  of  GISSU,  a  determinative  before  the  name  of  a  light. 
nu  is  for  Sir  which  equals  nuru,  "light".  IS  SIR  is  a  common 
ideogram  for  "light".  The  interchange  of  NU  and  SIRU  is  not  so 
easy  to  explain.  The  fact  that  NU  instead  of  SIRU  occurs  in  the 
name  of  the  temple  in  the  time  of  Hammurabi  would  go  to  show 
that  the  spelling  of  the  word  with  NU  is  more  primitive  than  the 
spelling  with  SIRU.  Perhaps  NU  has  a  value  Sir.  Briinnow  re- 
cognizes the  fact  that  NU  in  the  name  of  the  temple  sometimes 
takes  the  place  of  SIRU  (see  Br.  2005  and  1657).  There  is  a 
difference  between  IKU  and  6ALLU.  IKU  equals  basil,  while 
6ALLU  equals  rabH.  The  gal  (ES  mal)  of  IKU  must  be  different 
from  the  gal  of  GALLU. 

4.  a-a  dimmer  Sis-ki  ii-mu-un  dimmer  As-suh-ud 
0  father  Nannar,  lord  of  Namrasit! 

a-a  dimmer  &is-ki  ii-mu-un  (see  line  2). 

dimmer  As-suh-ud:  one  of  the  citations  Briinnow  gives,  in  which 
the  name  of  this  god  occurs,  is  in  Incantation  K.  3255  (IV  R.2  2,  21), 
where,  in  the  Sumerian  as  well  as  in  the  marginal  reading  of  the 
Assyrian,  Sin  is  said  ,to  be  the  lord  of  the  god  Namrasit.  dimmer 
En-zu-na  en  dimmer  As-suh-ud  ra-ge  =  ilu  Sin  be-el  ,Nam-ra-si-it. 
As-suh-ud  means  "the  only  foundation  of  light".  As  has  a  very 
common  Assyrian  equivalent  edu,  "one",  suh  equals  isdu,  "foundation", 
(Br.  4811).    ud  equals  urru,  "light",    (see  Br.  7798). 

5    ii-mu-un  dimmer  Sis-ki  tii-mu  sag  din9ir  En-lil-ld 

0  lord  Nannar,  chief  son  of  Bel! 
dimmer  g^.ki  (see   ]ine    2). 

tu-mu:  TU.MU  is  a  syllabic  and  dialectic  form  of  DUMU 
(Br.  4069  and  11917).  When  DUMU  stands  for  mdru,  "son",  it 
is  supposed  to  have  the  value  du  (Br.  4081).  tu-mu  is  no  doubt 
for  dumu  and  du  is  a  shortened  form  of  dumu.  pi:  the  sign  may 
be  recognized  as  old  Babylonian  appearing  in  this  form  in  the  Code 
of  Hammurabi  (see  also  AL.  p.  135,  No.  328). 

sag  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  5).  tu-mu  sag  must  be  equal 
to  some  such  expression  as  "first  born  son",  or  "only  begotten  son". 

dingir  En-lil-ld:  in  line  7,  we  shall  have  dimmer  Mu-ul-lil-ra 
and  in  line  18,  <>»>»>**  Mu-ul-lil-li.  din9ir  may  be  preferred  to  dimmer 
because  the  sign  is  a  determinative  to  an  EK  form.  En-lil-ld 
consists  of  the  god's  name,  En-lil  (see  Mu-ul-lil  in  Hymn  to  Bel, 
line  2). 

6.  sfg-ga-zu-ne  sfg-ga-zu-nc 

When  thou  art  full,  when  thou  art  full, 


—    47    — 

sig-ga-zu-ne  is  a  hal-cl&use  equal  to  ina  maltha,  'in  thy  ful- 
ness", stg:  the  sign  to  which  this  value  is  attached  is  composite. 
One  element  consists  of  SI  whose  chief  meaning  is  'fill".  The 
other  element  consists  of  A  which  means  'water".  SLA  then 
means  "full  of  water",  or  "fulness".  The  sign,  called  DIRIGU,  has 
two  values  ending  with  g;  i.  e.,  dirig  related  to  the  sign-name  and 
stg  which  is  quite  certainly  equal  to  malu  (Br.  3722).  ga  is  a 
phonetic  complement  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  4).  zu  is  a  deter- 
minate suffix  of  the  second  person  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  21). 
ne  is  a  postposition  equal  to  ina  (see  Br.  4602,  also  de  in  Hymn 
to  Bel,  line  6). 

7.  i-de  a-a-zu  i-de  dimmer  Mu-ul-lil-ra  Se-ir-ma-al-la-zu-ne 
When  before  thy  father,  before  Bel  thou  art  sovereign, 

i-de  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  6).  i-de  is  a  preposition  used 
as  a  noun  in  the  construct  state ,  having  the  meaning  of  makru 
or  pdnu  and  equal  to  ina  mahar  or  ina  pan. 

a-a-zu  equals  noun  a-a,  plus  suffix  zu.  a-a  (see  Hymn  to 
Bel,  line  3).     zu  (see  line  6). 

dimmer  Mu-ul-lil-ra  equals  god's  name  dimmer  Mu-ul-lil,  plus 
phonetic  complement  ra.  dimmer  Mu-ul-lil  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  2). 
ra  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  3).  It  might  be  better  to  regard  lil-ra 
as  a  shortened  form  of  lil-ld-ra.  lil  is  quite  apt  to  take  the 
phonetic  complement  Id,  a  value  of  the  sign  LALLU,  while  ra  is 
naturally  a  postposition. 

se-ir-ma-al-la-zu-ne  is  a  ^a^-clause  equal  to  "in  thy  sovereignty". 
se-ir-ma-al  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  1).     zu-ne  (see  line  6). 

8.  a-a  dimmer  gig.ki  se-ir-ma-al-la-zu-ne  gaba  zi-ga-zu-ne 

0  father  Nannar,  when  thou  art  sovereign,  when  thou 
liftest  up  thy  breast, 

a-a  dimmer  ft^M  (see  jme   2). 

se-ir-ma-al-la-zu-ne  (see  line  7). 

gaba  equals  irtu,  'breast",  (Br.  4470).  We  have  had  gaba 
as  an  adjective  equal  to  pitu  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  6). 

zi-ga-zu-ne  is  a  fo^-clause  meaning  'in  thy  lifting  up",  zi  equals 
nasu,  'lift  up",  (Br.  2325).  We  have  had  zi  as  equal  to  kenu, 
'right",  and  napistu,  'life",  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  lines  4  and  25).  ga 
is  a  phonetic  complement,  zi  might  be  zig  (see  Br.  2303  and 
Hymn  to  Bel ,  line  4).  zu-ne  (see  line  6).  In  gaba  zi-ga-zu-ne, 
perhaps  we  have  the  picture  of  the  full  moon  suddenly  rising  in 
the  night  from  the  horizon. 

9.  mh-gur  an-shg-ga  sig-ga  se-ir-ma-al-la-zu-ne 

0  ship  in  the  midst  of  the  heavens,  when  thou  art  full 
and  sovereign, 


—    48    — 

mh-gur  (see  line  1). 

an-§hg-ga:  SAGU  is  usually  taken  as  a  preposition  and  stands 
before  its  object.  Here  it  seems  to  follow  its  object,  an  (see  Hymn 
to  Bel,  line  18).  Shg-ga  equals  LIB  plus  GA.  $hg:  SA.GU,  equal 
to  libbu,  may  bave  either  one  of  three  values;  viz.,  sh  when  not 
followed  by  a  phonetic  complement,  Sag  when  followed  by  the 
phonetic  complement  ga  and  $hb  when  followed  by  the  phonetic 
complement  ba  (see  Br.  7980  and  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  22).  ga  (see 
Hymn  to  Bel,  line  4). 

sig-ga  (see  line  6). 

Se-ir-ma-al-la-zu-ne  (see  line  7). 

10.  a-a  dimmer  fifeM  za.e  g$  azag-su  pa(d)-a-zu-ne 

0  father  Nannar,  thou,  when  thou  speakest  to  the  shining 
house, 

a-a  dimmer  fajtl  (see    line   2). 

za-e  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  16). 

4i  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  16).  is"  is  admittedly  a  Sumerian 
value  as  is  shown  by  its  relation  to  the  sign-name  ESU.  £s  is 
the  fuller  form  of  e(BIT).  From  ts  there  has  arisen  a  Semitic 
loan-word  e$u,  "house". 

azag-8%  means  'to  the  shining",  azag  (see  line  1).  su  (see 
Hymn  to  Bel,  line  15). 

pa{d)-a-zu-ne  is  a  ^a^-clause  composed  of  a  preposition  with 
an  infinitive  that  governs  a  suffix,  as  ina  tamilca,  "in  tby  speaking", 
i.  e.,  "when  thou  speakest".  pad  is  a  verb  equal  to  tamu,  "speak". 
pad  also  equals  zakdru,  "to  name",  pa,  the  shortened  form  of 
pad,  evidently  intended  here,  is  sometimes  represented  by  the 
Assyrian  nabu.  a  is  the  vowel  of  prolongation  indicating  the^?a, 
rather  than  the  pad-\a\[xe.     zu-ne  (see  line  6). 

11.  a-a  dimmer  Sis-ki  mh-dim  egd  sig-ga-zu-ne 

0  father  Nannar,  when  like  a  ship  on  the  tide  thou  art  full, 

a-a  dimmer  gfoM  (see  line   2). 

ma-dim  consists  of  noun  ma  and  postposition  dim.  ma  (see 
on  line  1).  mh-gur  refers  to  the  moon,  ma  refers  to  an  ordinary 
ship,  dim  is  equal  to  kima,  "like".  The  sign-name  is  DLMMU. 
dim  is  ES.     The  EK  form  of  the  value  is  gim. 

egd  is  a  contraction  of  a,  ge  and  a  from  the  signs  A,  MI  and 
A,  and  means  "tide",  or  "high  water",  a  means  "water"  and  Ml 
with  the  value  gil  means  "black",  and  the  second  A  is  evidently 
phonetic  only.  8gd,  therefore,  means  "black  water",  such  water  as 
is  seen  in  a  "flood"  or  "high  tide". 

sig-ga-zu-ne  (see  line  6). 


—    49    — 

12.  sig-ga-zu-ne  sig-ga-zu-ne  za-e  sig-ga-zu-ne 

When  thou  art  full,  when  thou  art  Ml,  thou,  when  thou  art  full, 

sig-ga-zu-ne  (see  line  6). 

'za-e  (see  line  10).  It  may  be  noticed  that  stg-ga-zu-ne  occurs 
three  times  in  this  line  and  ten  times  in  the  section,  lines  6 — 18. 
This  repetition  no  doubt  serves  for  rhetorical  effect,  especially  in 
oral  delivery  and,  together  with  the  marked  uniformity  of  measure 
in  the  clauses,  characterizes  the  passage  as  poetic. 

13.  sig-ga-zu-ne  bi-sag-a-zu-ne  za-e  sig-ga-zu-ne 

When  thou  art  full,  when  thou  speakest  favorably,  thou, 
when  thou  art  full, 

sig-ga-zu-ne  (see  line  6). 

bi-Sag-a-zu-ne  is  a  hal-clause  equal  to  "in  thy  speaking  graciously". 
bi  equals  Tcibu,  "speak  ,  (Br.  5124).  Starting  with  the  meaning 
"speak"  the  sign  KASU  comes  to  have  a  demonstrative  force  and 
is  generally  used  as  a  suffix  of  the  third  person  singular.  We 
shall  also  see  that  it  sometimes  equals  silcaru  "strong  drink". 
Sag:  the  sign  giving  this  value  is  one  not  much  used.  It  may 
be  identified  as  GI&IMHAR  (see  AL.  p.  130,  No.  206,  also  Br.  7286). 
§ag  is  the  chief  value,  equal  to  dama.hu  or  damku,  "gracious". 
a:  the  value  is  generally  followed  by  the  phonetic  complement  ga, 
but  here  .  it  is  followed  by  a  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  9).  zu-ne 
(see  line  6). 

14.  bi-sag-a  ru-ti-a-zune  za-e  sig-ga-zu-ne 

When  thou  speakest  graciously  and  engenderest  life,  thou, 
when  thou  art  full, 

bi-sag-a  (see  line  13). 

ru-ti-a-zu  ne  is  a  fo^-clause  equal  to  "in  thy  engendering  life". 
rii:  we  have  had  UL  already  as  a  composite  part  of  Mu-ul-Ul  (see 
Hymn  to  Bel,  bine  2).  UL  bere  probably  with  the  value  rii  equals 
kaldlu,  "perfect".  The  sign  is  intended  to  be  the  picture  of  a 
goring  bull;  then,  as  we  get  away  from  the  primary  idea,  there 
arise  the  meanings  of  "exultation",  "perfection",  etc.  Nannar  is 
"the  perfecter  of  life",  ti  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  16).  a  (see 
Hymn  to  Bel,  line  9).     zu-ne  (see  line  6). 

za-e  (see  line  10). 

sig-ga-zu-ne  (see  Hne  6). 

15.  a-a  dimmer  Sis-ki  lid  damal  lid-ne-ra  sal-dug-ga-zu-ne 

0  father  Nannar  of  extensive  progeny,  when  thou  speakest 
to  that  progeny, 
a-a  dimmer  gfaj*  (see   on  line   2). 

lid  may  be  of  Semitic  origin  from  the  Assyrian  word  littu, 
"progeny".      The    two    horizontal    lines    in    the    sign    suggest    the 

4 


—    50    — 

idea  of  "pairing",  from  which  comes  the  idea  of  "progeny"  (thus, 
Prince,  MSL,  p.  223). 

damal  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  10). 

lid-ne-ra  equals  "to  that  progeny",  ne  equals  annu,  a  demon- 
strative pronoun  "this",  ne  is  cognate  with  de  which  is  also  cognate 
with  da  and  ia  used  as  postpositions  (see  de  and  da  in  Hymn  to 
Bel,  lines  6  and  4).  ra  is  a  postposition  =  "unto"  (see  Hymn  to 
Bel,  line  3). 

sal-dug-ga-zu-ne  is  a  hal-cl&use:  "in  thy  speaking",  sal  is  a 
prefix  of  an  abstract  character.  It  is  equivalent  to  the  Assyrian 
zinniSiu,  "feminine".  It  is  a  counterpart  to  ku  in  the  expressions 
Erne-sal  and  Eme-ku,  ku  being  equal  to  belu,  "lord".  As  a  prefix, 
sal  generalizes  the  root-idea  of  the  stem  to  which  it  is  attached 
and  is  consequently  an  abstract  prefix  (see  Br.  10930,  10949  and 
10955).     dug-ga  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  4).     zu-ne  (see  line  6). 

16.  a-a-zu  tde  hid-la  mu-e-si-in-mai  sal-zi  ma-ra  ni-in-gu 
Thy    father    discerns    the  joyful    face    and    speaks  life   to 
the  land. 

a-a-zu  (see  on  line  7). 

tde  equals  pdnu,  "face",  (Br.  9281).  The  sign  IGU  can  be 
read  either  tde,  which  is  ES,  or  ige,  which  is  EK. 

hid-la  equals  noun  hid,  plus  phonetic  complement  la.  hid 
equals  hadu,  "joy"  (Br.  10884).  The  sign  giving  this  value  is  not 
to  be  confounded  with  another  sign  which  also  has  the  value  hul 
meaning  "evil",  expressed  by  limuttu  (Br.  9503). 

mu-e-ii-in-mas  is  a  verb  consisting  of  verbal  prefix  mu,  verbal 
infixes  e  and  si-in  and  root  mas.  mu  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  lines  1 
and  18).  e  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  18).  si-in:  an  objective  verbal 
infix  naturally  has  its  person  determined  by  the  object  to  which 
it  refers.  That  object  in  this  case  seems  to  be  tde  hul-la,  "the 
joyful  face"  of  the  moon,  mas:  the  sign  has  two  names,  BARU 
and  MASU,  and  two  chief  values  related  to  these  names,  bar  and 
mas.  bar  and  mas  are  cognate  forms,  b  changes  to  to  (MSL. 
p.  X);  r  changes  to  £  (MSL.  p.  XII).  The  sign  has  two  chief 
meanings,  "side"  and  "cut".  The  meaning  of  "side"  is  represented 
by  bar  (see  MSL.  p.  234),  while  the  meaning  of  "cut",  from  which 
we  get  the  idea  of  "distinguish"  is  generally  represented  by  the 
value  mas'  (Br.  1735). 

sal-zi  consists  of  abstract  prefix  sal  and  noun  zi.  sal  (see 
on  line   15).     zi  (see  on  line   8). 

ma-ra  equals  "unto  the  land",  ma  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  8). 
ra  (see  line  15). 

ni-in-gu:  n%  can  be  a  verbal  prefix  and  in  a  verbal  infix,  or 
ni-in    can    be    a   verbal    infix    with   the  verbal  prefix  omitted,   gii 


—    51    — 

being  the  verbal  root.  m\  if  taken  as  a  prefix,  naturally  refers  to 
a-a-zu.  ni  may  have  a  demonstrative  force,  equal  to  suatu,  like 
ne.  in  as  an  infix  refers  to  rna-ra.  gu,  a  shortened  form  of  gug, 
equal  either  kibu,  "speak",  or  apdlu,  "answer",  gu"  and  gug  have 
dialectic  forms  du  and  dug,  the  g  changing  to  d  which  ES  prefers. 
The  sign  is  apparently  a  modification  of  the  sign  SANGU  (see  AL. 
p.  121,  No.  14,  and  p.  124,  No.  87).  The  primary  meaning  was 
"opening"  and  the  leading  value  is  ka  equal  to  pit,  "mouth".  The 
values  ka  and  gu  come  from  the  sign-name  KAGU  (see  Hymn  to 
Bel,  lines   1   and  4).     With  the  value  I  the  sig  means  "word". 

17.  e  i-i  lugal-ra  u-de-es  e  mu-un-i 

As    an  exalted  royal  command,  daily  he  causes  the  word 
to  go  forth! 

e  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  14). 

i-i:  i  is  the  chief  value  of  GITTU.  The  sign  with  its  five 
parallel  lines  or  wedges  representing  the  five  fingers  of  the  hand 
is  a  symbol  of  power.  From  the  idea  of  "power",  we  get  that  of 
"exaltation"  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  6). 

lugal-ra  consists  of  stem  lugal  and  postposition  ra.  lugal: 
the  sign  is  composite,  the  elements  being  GAL  and  LU  which 
mean  "great"  and  "man",  lugal  equals  sarru  (Br.  4266).  We 
shall  have  the  element  LU  with  the  ES  value  mulu.  ra  (see  Hymn 
to  Bel,  lines  3  and  8).     We  might  expect  la  here. 

u-de-es  consists  of  root  u,  phonetic  complement  de  and  ad- 
verbial ending  ei.  u  equals  umu,  "day",  (Br.  7797),  and  is  a 
shortened  form  of  ud.  de  is  phonetic  here.  The  more  usual 
phonetic  complement  of  ud  is  da  (see  Br.  7774).  es  (see  Br.  10001). 
es  as  an  adverbial  ending  is  probably  derived  from  the  Semitic 
adverbial  ending  -is  whicb  is  supposed  to  have  grown  out  of  the 
Assyrian  suffix  of  the  third  person  su.  Agglutinative  languages 
do  not  often  possess  special  adverbial  endings. 

mu-un-i  consists  of  verbal  prefix  mu-un  and  verbal  root  2. 
mu-un  is  phonetic  for  rnun  which  is  simply  a  nasalized  mu  (see 
MSL.  p.  XXVIII,  and  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  1).  On  g  (see  Hymn  to 
Bel,  line  15). 

18.  dimmer  Mu-ul-lil-li  mu-du-ru  u-sud-du  Su-za  ma-ra  ni-in-ru 
Bel  with  the  sceptre  of  distant  days  exalts  thy  hand  over 

the  land. 

dimmer  Mu-ul-lil-li  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  23). 

mu-du-ru:  there  is  a  sign  MUDRU  (Br.  10776)  which  may  be 

related    to  PA.     We    may    infer    a   relation  between  MUDRU  and 

PA,    because  the  two  signs  have  a  common  value  sig.     We  know 

also    that  MU.DU.RU    sometimes    stands  for  PA  (Br.  1275).     Now 

4* 


—    52    - 

if  MU.DU.RU  can  stand  for  PA  it  must  have  some  meaning  in 
common  with  PA.  The  most  usual  meaning  of  PA  is  hattu, 
"sceptre",  which  gives  good  sense  here,  mu  (see  Hymn  to  Bel, 
line  1).     du  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  15). 

u-sud-du  consists  of  noun  #,  adjective  sud,  and  phonetic  com- 
plement du.  u  (see  line  17).  sud  equals  ruku,  "distant"  (Br.  7603). 
du  (see  gin,  line  23),  phonetic  complement  here. 

M-za  equals  noun  M  and  suffix  za.  M  (see  Hymn  to  Bel, 
line  25).  za  is  a  suffix  of  the  second  person  singular  masculine 
(Br.  11722).  We  have  had  za-e  as  being  equal  to  "thou"  (Hymn 
to  Bel,  line  16).  zu  we  have  found  to  be  the  more  usual  suffix 
of  the  second  person  (see  on  line  6).     za  is  dialectic  for  zu. 

ma-ra  (see  on  line  16). 

ni-in-rii  consists  of  prefix  ni,  infix  in  and  verbal  root  ru.  ni-in 
(see  on  line  16).     rn  (see  on  line  14). 

19.  !Sis-unu-kt-ma  mh-gur  azag-ga  pa(d)-a-zu-ne 
When  in  Ur,  0  shining  ship,  thou  speakest, 

Sis-unu-ki-ma  (see  on  line  2). 
mh-gur  (see  on  line  1). 

azag-ga   equals  adjective  azag,   plus  phonetic  complement  ga. 
azag  (see  on  line  1).     ga  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  4). 
pa(d)-a-zu-ne  (see  on  line  10). 

20.  .  .  dimmer  Nu-dim-mud-e  sal-dug-ga-zu-ne 
When  to  .  .  Ea  thou  speakest, 

dimmer  Nu-dim-mud-e:  we  have  here  a  compound  ideogram 
as  a  name  of  the  god  Ea.  dimmer  is  the  determinative  before  the 
name  of  a  god  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  2).  Nu-dim-wiud  equals 
the  Assyrian  E-a  (Br.  2016).  The  usual  Sumerian  ideogram  is 
EN.KI.  e  in  Nu-dim-mud-e  a  vowel  of  prolongation  (see  Hymn 
to  Bel,  line  3). 

sal-dug-ga-zu-ne  (see  line  15). 

21 [pa(d)]-a-zu[-ne] 

When thou  speakest, 

pa(d)-a-zu-ne  (see  line  10). 

Reverse 

22 

23 la  a  i'm[-si] 

with  water  is  filled 


—    53    — 

a  equals  mu,  "water"  (Br.  11347).  "Water"  is  a  primaiy 
meaning  of  the  sign  AU,  which  at  first  consisted  of  two  short 
perpendicular  lines  representing  "falling  water"  (see  Hymn  to  Bel, 
line  3). 

im-si  consists  of  indeterminate  verbal  prefix  im  and  verbal 
root  si.     im  (Br.  p.  545).     si  (Hymn  to  Bel,  line  22). 

24 gi  a  im-si 

with  water  is  filled. 

a  im-si  (see  line  23). 

25.  Id e  a  im-si  *™™r  [Sis-ki-kam] 

The  river  ....  is  filled  with  water  by  Nannar. 

Id  equals  ndru,  "river".  Sometimes  Id  is  shortened  to  i 
(Br.  11647).  The  value  Id  comes  from  the  union  of  two  signs  A 
„  water"  and  TU  (Br.  10217).  Moreover,  TU  with  the  value  tu 
equals  apsu,  "sea".  The  TU  sign,  explained  more  minutely,  consists 
of  HAL  "run"  inside  of  KIL  "enclosure".  So  HAL  -f-  KlL  =  "run- 
ning, flowing  within  an  enclosure",  hence  =  "sea".  While  Id  means 
primarily  "water  of  the  sea",  it  is  much  used  also  as  a  determinative 
before  names  of  rivers.  We  have  the  name  of  the  Euphrates  in 
the  next  line.  Perhaps  the  name  of  the  Tigris  was  given  in  some 
one  of  the  lines.  The  common  Sumerian  ideogram  for  the  name 
of  the  Tigris  is  hal-hal,  an  intensified  form  of  hal,  which  means 
"running"  or  "rushing".  The  Tigris  is  thus  very  appropriately  called 
"the  rushing  river".  The  Babylonian  Diglat  in  the  hands  of  the 
Persians  took  the  form  Tigra. 

26.  azag-gi  Id  ud-kib-nun-na-ge  a  im-si  [(limmer  Sis-ki-kam] 
The  bright  Euphrates  is  filled  with  water  by  Nannar. 

azag-gi  equals  ellu,  "shining"  (Br.  9901).  azag  (see  line  19). 
gi  is  a  phonetic  complement,  chosen  no  doubt  with  a  view  to 
vowel  harmony  as  regards  the  following  Id  (?).  GI  as  an  ideogram 
means  "reed"  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  24,  gin). 

"*  ud-kib-nun-na-ge  means  the  river  of  Sippar.  For  Id,  see 
on  line  25.  ud-kib-nun  consists  of  ud  "sun"  +  kib  "flourish, 
generate",  and  nun  "great".  The  sign  KIB  suggests  the  idea 
"double"  and  hence,  of  course,  "generate,  beget"  (MSL.  p.  203). 
Nun,  of  course,  =  rabu  "great"  (Br.  2628),  while  na  must  be  the 
phonetic  complement  and  ge  the  nota  genitivi  as  used  in  the  next 
Hymn.  The  torm  ud-kib-nun  then  seems  to  mean  "the  great  (nun) 
generative  force  (kib)  of  the  sun"  (ud);  a  name  applied  to  Sippar 
had  been  from  time  immemorial  the  seat  of  the  worship  of  the 
sun-god  Samas  (RBA. ,  pp.  69,  117).  Id-ud-kib-nun-nage  then 
simply    means   "the  river  (Id)  of  (ge)  Sippar",  viz.,   the  Euphrates, 


—    54    — 

which  was  usually  termed  in  Sumerian  Bura-nunu  "the  great  stream" 
(MSL.  p.  7,  C). 

a  im-si  (see  on  line  23). 

27.  Id  nu  e-bi  Idh-e  a  im-si  dimmer  Sis-ki-kam 

The  empty  river  is  filled  with  water  by  Nannar. 

Id  (see  on  line  25). 

nu,  regular  Sumerian  negative  abverb,  equal  to  the  Assyrian  la. 

ebi  equals  noun  e  and  suffix  bi.  e  equals  mu,  "water"  (Br.  5844). 
We  have  also  had  e  equal  to  Jcabu,  "speech"  (Hymn  to  Bel,  line  14). 
bi  is  a  suffix  of  the  third  person  singualar  (see  Br.  5135).  bi  gets 
its  demonstrative  nature  from  the  conception  "speak"  which  seems 
to  be  the  primary  one  in  the  old  Babylonian  linear  hieroglyph. 

Idh-e  consists  of  root  Idh  and  vocalic  prolongation  e.  Idh 
equals  misu  "wash"  (Br.  6167).  It  is  used  of  washing  the  hands 
and  feet.  It  gets  the  idea  "wash"  from  the  idea  "servant"  who 
does  the  washing,  but  it  may  have  meant  "servant"  before  it  meant 
"wash".  It  often  has  the  phonetic  complement  ha  or  hi.  Literally 
the  clause  read  :  "the  river  whose  water  washes  not". 

a  im-si  (see  on  line  23). 

dimmer  ^.w.fo,m  equals  god-name  dimmer  Sis-**  plus  ham  = 
KAMMU  without  doubt  (see  CT.  XV,  Colophon  of  Tablet  29623, 
plate  12).  kam  is  a  well  recognized  determinative  used  after  ordinal 
numerals.  It  no  doubt  occupies  this  position  as  a  genitive  particle, 
but,  as  a  genitive  sign,  it  may  be  used  after  words  other  than 
numerals;  and,  in  fact,  is  so  used  in  Gudea.  It  is  evidently  a 
lengthened  form  of  the  postposition  Jca;  being  lea  plus  am  (see 
SVA.  p.  60). 

28.  sug  mah  sua  ban-da  a  im-si  dimmer  Svt-kl-kam 

The  great  marsh,  the  little  marsh  is  filled  with  water  by 
Nannar. 

The  sign  looks  like  MA  but  perhaps  the  copyist  made  a  mistake. 

mah  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  23). 

sug  equals  susu,  "marsh".  The  sign  is  the  enclosure-sign  KIL 
with  the  "water"  sign  AU  within  tbe  "enclosure"  sign. 

ban-da:  the  signs  are  DUMU  and  DADDU.  DUMD  has  several 
values,  the  chief  of  whieh  are  dumu,  tur  and  ban.  dumu  equals 
mdru,  "son".  We  have  met  the  value  dumu  or  its  dialectic  equi- 
valent tumu,  represented  by  TU  and  MU  (see  on  line  5).  tur 
equals  sihru,  "small",  and  is  naturally  followed  by  the  phonetic 
complement  ra.     ban-da  also  equals  sihru  "little"  (Br.  4133). 

a  im-si  (see  on  line  23). 

dimmer  QhMJcOm  (see  line  27). 


—    55    — 

29.  er  lim-ma  dimmer  En-zu 
Penitential  Psalm  to  Sin. 

er-lim-ma  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  27). 

dimmer  En-zu  "lord  of  wisdom"  is  the  other  name  by  which 
Sin  is  known  in  Sumerian.  We  have  had  one  name  above;  viz., 
dimmer  £&_fo  dimmer  En-ZU  js  n0  doubt  in  genitive  relation  to  the 
preceding  part  of  the  line,  although  the  notd  genitivi  is  lacking. 
In  another  hymn  to  Bel  (CT.  XV,  Tablet  29644,  plate  12),  the 
genitive  relation  is  signified  by  the  postposition  kam.  The  words 
are:  tr-lim-ma  d"wir  En-lil-ld-kam. 


Chapter  III 

Tablet  29631,  Plates  15  and  16,  Hymn  To  ADAD 
Obverse 

1.  [had-~]e([JD.DU)-a  mu-zu  an[-zak-ku] 

In  the  lightning  flash  thou  proclaimest  thy  name. 

2.  dimmer  MerQM)  bi-mah  £ad-3(UD.DU)-a  mu-zu  an[-zak-ku] 

0  Adad,    in   the  mighty  thunder  and  the  lightning  flash  thou 
declarest  thy  name. 

3    [dimmer^  MerQM)  dumu  An-na  bi-mah  £ad-g(UD.DU)-a  mu-zu 
an-za\k-ku\ 
0  Adad,  son  of  Anu,  in  the  mighty  thunder  and  the  lightning 
flash  thou  declarest  thy  name. 

4.  u-mu-un  nl(IM)-ki-ge(KIT)  bi-mah  £acfo?(UD.DU)-a  mu-zu  an- 
zak[-ku] 
0  lord,  dread  of  earth,  in  the  mighty  thunder  and  the  lightning 
flash  thou  declarest  thy  name. 

5    dimmer  ]\ferQM)    u-mu-un    ib{TXJW)-mal(IG)-la    bi-mah    had-S- 
(UD.DU)-a  mu-zu  an[-zak-ku\ 
0  Adad,  lord  of  great  wrath,  in  the  mighty  thunder  and  the 
lightning  flash  thou  declarest  thy  name. 

6.  bar(mas?)-tab-ba  u-mu-un  dimmer  ama-an-ki-ga  bi-mah  had-e 

(UD.DU)-a  [mu-zu  an-zak-ku] 
0    twin,    lord,    bull-god    of  heaven    and    earth,    in    the   mighty 
thunder  and  the  lightning  flash  thou  declarest  thy  name. 

7.  a-a  dimmer  MerQM)  u-mu-un  ud-da  bar-ru-a  mu-zu  an-zak-ku 
0  father  ADAD,  lord,  when  the  light  is  darkened  thou  declarest 

thy  name. 


—    56    — 

8.  aa  dtmmer  Mer(lM)  u(UD)-gal-la  bar-ru-a  mu-zu  an-zak-ku 

0  father  Adad,  when  the  great  day  is  darkened  thou  declarest 
thy  name. 

9.  a-a  dimmer  i/er(lM)  uku(UG)-gal-la  bar-ru-a  mu-zu  an-zak-ku 
0  father  Adad,  when  the  great  king  is  cut  off  thou  declarest 

thy  name. 

10.  dimmer  Mer{m)  uku(\5G)  An-na  bi-mah  fo«2-g(UD.DU)-a  mu-zu 

an-zak-ku 
0  Adad,  king  of  Anu,  in  the  mighty  thunder  and  the  lightning 
flash  tbou  declarest  thy  name. 

11.  mu-zu  kalam(\J}i)-7na  mu-un-ru(\JL)-ru(XJL)-ru(XJL) 
Thy  name  is  mightily  magnificent  in  the  earth. 

12.  me-lam(NE)-zu  kalam(UN)-ma  tug(KU)-gim  im-mi-in-dul 
Thy  brightness  covers  the  land  like  a  garment. 

13.  za  had(FA)  a/ca(RAM)-zu-sw(KU)   kur-gal  a-a  dimmer  Mu-ul-lil 

sag  im-da-sig(PA)-gi 
The   lightning    of  thy   thunder   smites    the    head  of  the  great 
mountain,  father  Bel. 

14.  Mrsa(HAR.DU)-zu  ctma(DAGAL)  gal  dimmer  Nin-lil  ba-e-di-hu- 

ldh-e 
Thy  thunder  terrifies  the  great  mother  Belit. 

15.  (Un9ir  En-lil-li  dumu-ni  dimmer  Me>(JM)-ra  &(ID)  mu-un-da-an- 

afca(RAM) 
Bel  to  his  son  Adad  measures  out  power. 

16.  mulu  dumu-mu  «(UD)  um-me-si-si-si  m(UD)  um-me-Si-ld-ld 
Tbou  who  art  my  son,  the  day  thou  didst  lift  up  the  eye,  the 

day  thou  didst  look! 

17.  dimmer  Mer(IM)-ri  t2(UD)  um-me-si-si-si  «(UD)  um-me-si-ld-ld 
0  Adad,    the    day    thou    didst   lift   up  the  eye,    the  day  thou 

didst  look! 

18.  m(UD)  iminna-bi-mes  bagan-tal(R\)-ld  w(UD)  um-me-si-ld-ld 
During    seven    days    thou   didst   blow  a  full   blast    when  thou 

didst  look. 

19.  w(UD)    i(KA)   di-zu-ka  har(GUD)-ha-ra   abba  u(UD)  um-me- 

si-ld-ld 
It   was    the    day    of   the    word    of  the  word  of  thy  judgment, 
0  bull-god  of  the  abyss,  the  day  thou  didst  look. 

20.  nim-gir  luh  su-si-siifKU)  mu-ra-du-ud 

As  the  lightning,  the  messenger  of  terror,  thou  didst  go. 


—    57    — 

21.  mulu   dumu-mu   rtt(UL)  gin(D\J)-na-gin(DXJ)-na  a-ba  zi-gi-en 

te-ga(BA) 
When   thou    who  art  my  son  goest  violently  about,    who  can 
attack  like  thee! 

Reverse 

22.  hibala  hul  gig  a-a  muh-zu-su(KU)  a-ba  za-e-gim  te-ga(BA) 
The  troublesome  evil  hostile  land,  0  father,   which  is  against 

thee;  who  like  thee  can  attack! 

23.  nd(DAK)  imi  tur-ture  su-um-me-ti  a-ba  za-e-gim  te-ga(BA) 
The   little  stone  of  the  storm  do  thou  take!    Who  can  attack 

like  thee! 

24.  nd(DAK)  gal-gal-e  su-um-me-ti  a-ba  za-egim  te-ga(BA) 
The  large  stone  do  thou  take!    Who  can  attack  like  thee! 

25.  nd(DAK)  tur-tur-zu  na(DAK)  gal-gal-zu  muh-ba  u-me-dm(A.AN) 
Thy  little  stone,  thy  large  stone,  on  it  (the  land)  it  lieth ! 

26.  hi-bala-a  zi-da-zu  u-mu-e-gul  da  bur(BTJ)  su  u-mu-e-se 

The    hostile    land    thy  right  hand  destroys.     It  gives  powerful 
bodily  destruction  (?) 

27.  flfoww  Mer(lM)-ri  dug(KA)-dug(KA)-ga  a-a  muh-na-su(KU)  gei 

(IZ)-m'  ba-si-in-ag 
Adad,  when  he  speaks  (to  one).  0  father,  on  him  he  imposes 
his  government. 

28.  a-a  dimmer  MerQM)   e(BIT)-to  g(UD.DU)-a-m  tf(UD)  2(KA)  di 

na-nam 
Father  Adad,    when  he  comes  out  of  the  house,   he  fixes  the 
day  of  judgment. 

29.  ^(BIT)-to  eri-ta  g(UD.DU)-a-m  uku(UG)  ban(TJJR)-da  na-nam 
When  he  comes  out  of  the  house  or  out  of  the  city,  he  fixes 

the  great  day, 

30.  eri-ta  an-na-ta  gar(SA)-ra-ni  w(UD)  l(KA)-kar-ra  na-nam 
When  he  establishes  himself  out  of  the  city  out  of  heaven,  he 

fixes  the  day  of  curse. 

31.  .  .  .  gr(A.SI)  hm(LIB)-ma  dimmer  MerQW) 
Hymn  to  Adad. 

This  hymn  we  find  to  be  full  of  action.  The  lightning  flashes 
in  the  first  fine,  and  we  see  at  least  three  distinct  kinds  of  storm 
placed  on  the  scene,  one  succeeding  the  other.  The  thunder  storm 
first  passes  over  our  head.  We  see  the  lightniDg,  we  hear  the 
roar   of  the    thunder,   the    earth   is  placed  in  fear,   the  day  turns 


—    58    — 

dark,  the  top  of  the  mountain  is  smitten,  the  very  gods  themselves 
are  terrified.  Secondly  comes  the  flood.  The  storm  of  the  hour 
is  lengthened  into  one  of  days.  It  becomes  a  deluge  of  judgment 
on  the  earth.  The  words  say  seven  days,  but  in  such  poetic  dis- 
course seven  might  perhaps  simply  mean  "many".  Finally,  there 
is  a  decided  change  in  the  scene  The  flood  has  passed  away. 
The  death -destroying  hail-storm  falls  upon  us,  not  simply  the  little 
hail-stones,  but  the  great  hail-stones.  The  day,  of  course,  has  come. 
But  the  effects  of  Adad's  power  so  artistically  set  forth  in 
this  hymn  are  secondary,  as  placed  beside  the  dignity  of  the  god 
himself.  The  word  of  Adad  is  absolute  and  all-powerful.  He  is 
a  god  of  great  wrath.  He  is  a  real  bull-god,  of  heaven  and  earth. 
He  can  put  the  heavens  out  of  sight  He  can  make  day  as  black 
as  the  darkest  night.  He  can  split  the  earth  with  his  lightning. 
He  can  flood  the  land  with  water.  He  can  pelt  its  inhabitants 
with  stones.     Yet  in  all  this  he  consults  with  father  Bel. 

Obverse 

1.  [had]-e-a  mu-zu  an-[zak-ku] 

In  the  lightning  flash  thou  proclaimest  thy  name! 

had-t-a  is  a  W-clause,  consisting  of  noun  had,  participle  2 
and  postposition  a,  and  means  "in  the  going  out  of  the  sceptre", 
or  freely,  "in  the  lightning  flash".  The  apodosis  is  mu-zu  an-zak-ku. 
had  (PA)  equals  hattu,  'sceptre"  (Br.  5573).  The  value  had  may 
be  of  Semitic  origin,  but  note  that  its  cognate  hud  is  equal  to 
namdru,  "brightness"  (Br.  5582),  as  is  also  kun,  another  value  of 
PA  "staff";  then  PA  =  "a  lighted  torch",  e  we  have  had  as  equal 
to  asu  (Hymn  to  Bel,  line  15).  t  is  also  equal  to  supu,  "flashing" 
(Br.  5638).     a  equals  tna,  "in"  (Br.  11365). 

mu-zu  means  "thy  name",    mu  equals  sumu,  "name"  (Br.  1235). 

an-zak-ku  is  a  verb,  an  is  an  indeterminate  verbal  prefix. 
The  context  shows  it  to  be  of  the  second  person  (see  MSL.  p.  XXVI). 
zak-ku  may  mean  "utter  a  decree"  (Br.  6519).  For  example,  zak 
equals  tamitu,  "a  decree"  (Br.  6493).  Perhaps  it  could  as  well 
be  a  verb  signifying  "to  decree",  or  "to  establish",  ku  also  equals 
tamu,  "utter"  (Br.  10555),  but  it  would  be  simpler  to  make  ku 
a  phonetic  complement  to  zak.  It  may  be  that  we  ought  to  read 
the  clause:  "thy  name  utters  the  decree".  But  "thy  name"  has 
the  usual  position  of  the  object.  It  is  also  rather  awkward  to 
regard  zak  as  an  object  placed  between  the  verbal  prefix  and  the  verb. 

2    dimmer  ^fa  Jj'.^/,  had-3-a  mu-zu  an-[zak-ku] 

0  Adad,  in  the  mighty  thunder  and  the  lightning  flash  thou 
declarest  thy  name. 


—    59    — 

dimmer  J^fgj..  this  is  the  Sumerian  name  of  the  storm-god.  Mer 
being  one  of  the  values  of  the  sign  IMMD.  The  fact  that  the 
sign  in  some  cases  in  this  hymn  (e.  g.  lines  15  and  17)  is 
followed  by  the  phonetic  complement  ri  or  ra  shows  that  Mer  is 
the  value  intended  for  the  name  of  the  god.  Mer  is  probably 
from  imi  changed  to  immer  and  then  to  Mer  and  hence,  like  imi, 
means  "wind"  and  "storm".  The  name  Mer  offers  no  suggestion 
as  to  the  origin  of  the  Semitic  names  Rammdnu  and  Addu. 

bi-mah  equals  "mighty  utterance",  bi  (see  Hymn  to  Sin, 
line  13).     mah  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  23). 

kad-e-a  mu-zu  an-zak-ku  (see  on  line  1). 

3.  [dimmer^  jtfgf.  dumu  An-na  bi-mah  had-t-a  mu-zu  an-za[Jc-ku] 
0  Adad,  son  of  Anu,  in  the  mighty  thunder  and  the  light- 
ning flash  thou  declarest  thy  name. 

dumu  (see  Hymn  to  Sin,  line  5,  tu-mu). 

An-na,  ideogram  for  the  god  of  heaven,  plus  phonetic  com- 
plement. Note  that  AN  for  the  god  Anu  does  not  take  the 
determinative  god  sign.  Probably  the  omission  is  due  to  the 
desire  to  avoid  the  occurrence  of  AN  twice  in  succession.  It  must 
have  been  after  Adad  had  taken  the  place  of  Istar  in  the  second 
triad  of  gods  that  Adad  was  called  the  son  of  Anu.  The  earlier 
arrangement  was  Anu,  Bel,  Ea,  Sin,  Samas  and  Ktar.  The  later 
order  was  Anu,  Bel  and  Ea,  as  rulers  of  the  universe,  and  Sin, 
Sama&  and  Adad,  as  rulers  of  heaven  under  the  command  of  Anu. 
This  new  grouping  was  the  result  of  a  theological  development. 
I&tar  was  found  to  be  one  of  the  planets,  and,  therefore,  not  to 
be  classed  longer  along  with  Sin  and  Samas.  Adad,  the  god  of 
the  atmosphere,  was  thought  to  be  a  personality  of  sufficient  dignity 
to  take  the  place  formerly  occupied  by  Istar. 

bi-mah  hade-a  mu-zu  an-zak-ku  (see  on  lines   1   and  2). 

4.  ii-mu-un  nl-ki-ge  bi-mah  had-e-a  mu-zu  an-zak-\ku\ 

0  lord,    dread    of   earth,    in    the    mighty    thunder   and  the 
lightning  flash  thou  declarest  thy  name. 

u-mu-un  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line   1). 

nl-ki-ge:  n\  is  a  value  of  IMMU  equal  to  puluhtu,  "fear"  (see 
Hymn  to  Bel,  line  18).  ki  equals  irsitu,  "earth"  (see  Hymn  to 
Bel,  line  9).     ge  is  a  postpositive  sign  of  the  genitive  (see  Br.  5935. 

bi-mah  had-d-a  mu-zu  an-zak-ku  (see  lines  1  and  2). 

5.  dimmer  ]$&.  u-mu.un  ib-mal-la  bi-mah  had-S-a  mu-zu  an- 

[zak-ku] 
0  Adad,   lord  of  great  wrath,    in  the  mighty  thunder  and 
and  the   lightning  flash  thou  declarest  thy  name. 


—    60    — 

ib-nial-la:  ib  is  a  value  of  TUM  equal  to  agdgu,  "anger" 
(Br.  4954).  mal  is  a  value  of  IKU  which  is  dialectic  for  PISANNU 
and  also  for  MA.AL  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  lines  1  and  18,  and 
Hymn  to  Sin,  2).     ibmal  =  "wrathful"  (Br.   2242). 

bi-mah  had-e-a  mu-zu  an-zak-ku  (see  on  lines  1   and  2). 

6.  tab-lab-ba  ii-mu-un  dimmer  ama-an-ki-ga  bi-mah  had-i-a 
[mu-zu  an-zak-ku] 
0  twin,  lord,  hull-god  of  heaven  and  earth,  in  the  mighty 
thunder  and  the  lightning  flash  thou  declarest  thy  name. 

bar-tab-ba  equals  lu'dmu,  "twin"  (Br.  1896).  mas  equals 
tu'dmu  (Br.  1811),  while  the  cognate  bar  equals  tappu,  "companion" 
(Br.  1807).  mas,  which  represents  the  idea  "cut",  is  more  primitive 
than  bar  which  represents  the  idea  "side",  mas'  is  also  equal  to 
rndSu,  "twin",  a  Sumerian  loan-word  in  Assyrian,  tab  equals  tappH 
(Br.  3775).  tab  may  have  been  inserted,  that  bar  "companion" 
should  be  taken  rather  than  the  narrower  word  "twin"  (Hymn  to 
Sin,  16).  ba  is  a  phonetic  complement  (Br.  102  and  Hymn  to  Bel, 
line  25).  Adad  is  called  "twin"  or  "companion",  because  he  possessed 
a  composite  nature,  comprising  in  himself  the  elements  of  several 
gods.  The  manifestations  of  power  seen  in  wind  and  rain  and  in 
lightning  and  thunder,  would  logically  lead  to  the  conclusion  that 
his  nature  was  divided,  or  that  he  brought  to  his  aid  several  gods 
endowed  with  powers  suited  to  different  kinds  of  effort.  The  gods 
that  aided  Adad  were  sometimes  looked  upon  as  birds,  one  of 
whom  was  the  god  Zu,  who  presided  over  the  tempest.  Zu's  mother 
mother  was  Siris,  lady  of  the  rain  and  clouds.  Then  there  was 
Martu,  the  lord  of  the  squall,  and  Barku,  the  genius  of  the  light- 
ning. The  son  of  Zu  was  a  strong  bull  who  pastured  in  the 
meadows,  bringing  abundance  and  fertility.  There  was  also  Sutu, 
the  south  wind.  He ,  no  doubt ,  was  an  agent  of  Adad's.  There 
is  another  way  in  which  Adad  may  be  looked  upon  as  twin-like 
in  his  nature.  He  could  pass  suddenly  from  the  fiercest  anger  to 
gentlest  kindness.  He  was  represented  in  sculpture  as  carrying  a 
battle-axe.  Kings  invoked  his  aid  against  their  enemies.  In  his 
passionate  rage  he  destroyed  everything  before  him.  When  his 
wrath  was  appeased,  however,  there  might  come  the  gentle  breeze 
and  the  refreshing  shower.  The  fields  which  he  had  devastated 
he  also  caused  to  blossom  and  produce  fruit  and  grain. 

dimmer  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  2). 

ama-an-ki-ga:  ama  equals  rimu,  "bull"  (see  Hymn  to  Bel, 
line  7.  and  9).  an  (see  Hymn  to  B61,  line  18).  ki  (see  on  line  4). 
ga  seems  to  be  a  postposition  (see  MSL.  p.  XVI).  ga  might  perhaps 
be  equal  to  baSu,  "being"  (Br.  6109). 

bi-mah  had-e-a  mu-zu  an-zak-ku  (see  on  lines  1  and  2). 


—    61    — 

7.  a-a  dimmer  filer  u-mu-un  ud-da  bar-ru-a  mu-zu  an-zak-ku 
0   father   Adad,   lord,    when   the    light   is    darkened,   thou 

declarest  thy  name. 

a-a  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  3). 

ud-da:  ud  equals  urru,  "light"  (Br.  7798,  also  Hymn  to  Sin, 
line  17).     da  is  a  phonetic  complement  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  16). 
mu-zu  an-zak-ku  (see  on  line  1). 

8.  a-a  dimmer  fij^  ft-gal-la  bar-ru-a  mu-zu  an-zak-ku 

0    father    Adad,   when   the    great   day   is    darkened,    thou 
declarest  thy  name. 

u-gal-la:  H  (see  Hymn  to  Sin,  line  17).  gal-la  (see  Hymn  to 
Bel,  line  14). 

bar-ru-a:  bar  equals  pardsu,  "cut  off"  (Br.  1785).  The  idea 
"cut",  however,  is  more  usually  expressed  by  the  value  mas  (see 
on  line  6).  ru,  being  a  phonetic  complement,  limits  us  to  the 
choice  of  the  value  bar  here. 

9.  a-a  dimmer  fii^  uku-gal-la  bar-ru-a  mu-zu  an-zak-ku 

0  father  Adad,  when  the  great  king  is  cut  off,  thou  declarest 
thy  name. 

uku-gal-la:  uku  a  value  of  UG,  which  is  here  a  Babylonian 
sign  found,  for  instance,  in  the  Cyrus  Cylinder,  equals  both  umu, 
"day",  and  Sarru,  "king"  (Br.  3861  and  3862).    gal-la  (see  on  line  8). 

10.  dimmer  3/^  M£M  ^n.na  bi-mah  had-%-a  mu-zu  an-zak-ku 
0  Adad,   king    of  Anu,   in    the   mighty   thunder  and  the 

lightning  flash  thou  declarest  thy  name. 
dimmer  fifo  (see  on  i^  2).    uku  (see  MSL.  344  and  on  line  9). 

11.  mu-zu  kalam-ma  mu-un-rii-ru-ru 

Thy  name  is  mightily  magnificent  in  the  earth. 

mu-zu  (see  on  line  1). 

kalam-ma:  kalam  as  a  value  is  related  to  the  sign-name 
KALAMMU  and  equals  mdtu,  "land"  (Br.  5914).  We  have  already 
had  the  value  un  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  1).  ma  is  a  phonetic 
complement  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  1). 

mu-un-ru-rii-ru:  mu-un  (see  Hymn  to  Sin,  line  17).  ru-rii-ru 
(see  Hymn  to  Sin,  line  14).  A  double  form  like  ru-ru  is  common, 
but  the  triple  form  is  rare,  and  expresses  a  very  unusual  emphasis. 

12.  me-lam-zu  kalam-ma  tug-gim  im-mi-in-dul 
The  brightness  covers  the  land  like  a  garment. 

me-lam-zu  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  21). 
kalam-ma  (see  on  line  11). 


—    62     — 

tug-gun:  tug  equals  subatu,  "clothing"  (Br.  10551).  gim  is 
an  EK  form.    We  have  had  the  ES  form  dim  (Hymn  to  Sin,  line  11). 

immi-in-dul:  im  is  an  indeterminate  verbal  prefix,  but  commonly 
used  for  the  third  person  (see  Br.  p.  545).  mi-in  is  a  verbal  infix, 
used  chiefly  of  the  third  person  (MSL.  pp.  XXIV  and  XXXII).  Its 
antecedent  here  is  kalam-ma.  dul  equals  katdmu,  "cover",  but  du 
also  equals  .subtu,  "dwelling"  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  14),  connoting 
in  both  instances  the  idea  "cover,  shelter". 

13.  za  had   aka-zu-m   kurgal  a-a  dimm^r  Mu-ul-lil  sag  im- 

da-sig-gi 
The    stone   of  the  sceptre  of  thy  thunder  strikes  the  head 
of  the  great  mountain,  father  Bel. 

za  equals  abnu.  "stone"  (Br.  11721  and  Hymn  to  Sin,  line  18). 
There  is  another  sign  used  more  commonly  than  ZAU  to  represent 
"stone";  namely,  DAKKU. 

had  (see  on  line  1). 

aka-zu-su:  aka  equals  ramdmu,  "roar"  (Br.  4746).  The 
meaning  of  RAM  as  ramdmu  seems  to  come  through  mnemonic 
paronomasia  by  way  of  the  value  aka  as  equal  to  rimu,  "love". 
It  is  important  to  distinguish  ramdmu  from  Hamman,  an  Assyrian 
name  for  Mer  meaning  "thunderer",  as  well  as  from  ramdnu,  "self". 
ramdnu  self  is  often  a  pun  on  Ramman.  zu  (see  Hymn  to  Bel, 
line  21).     sii  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  15). 

kur-gal:  kur  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  3).  gal  (see  Hymn  to 
Bel,  line  14). 

a-a  dimmer  Mu-id-lil  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  3).  In  the  Hymn 
to  Bel  (line  16),  Bel  seems  to  be  called  a  mountain.  The  thought 
probably  is  suggested  by  E-kur  of  Nippur. 

14.  ursa-zu  hma  gal  dimmer  Nin-lil  ba-e-di-hu-lah-e 
Thy  thunder  terrifies  the  great  mother  Belit. 

ursa  equals  ramdmu  (Br.  8556).  ur  is  a  value  of  HAR  which 
itself  may  mean  ramdmu  (Br.  8539)  and  3a  is  a  value  of  DU 
which  we  know  means  aldku.    ursa  must  mean  "advancing  thunder". 

hma  equals  ummu,  "mother".  The  idea  of  "mother"  arises 
out  of  "amplitude",  which  the  sign  is  intended  pictorially  to  represent. 
damal  is  a  common  value  of  the  same  sign  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  10). 

gal  (Hymn  to  Bel,  line  14). 

dimmer  Nin-lil.  Nin-lil  is  the  Sumerian  name  of  Belit,  the 
consort  of  Bel.  Nin  equals  Bellu,  "lady",  lil  has  the  same  meaning 
as  in  En-lil  or  Mid-lil  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  2).  Kin-lil  is 
exactly  the  reverse  with  respect  to  sex  of  Em-lil.  Belit,  like  Bel, 
had  a  temple  at  Nippur  which  dates  back  apparently  to  the  time 


—    63    — 

of  the  early  dynasties  of  Ur.  It  was,  however,  simply  a  dim 
shadow  of  the  temple  of  Bel.  The  goddess  of  the  divine  family 
never  achieved  the  popularity  attained  by  the  god ,  the  father  of 
*  the  family.  Besides  being  called  Nin-lil,  "lady  of  mercy"  (Br.  5932), 
she  was  sometimes  called  Nin-har-sag,  "lady  of  the  high  mountain", 
which  would  indicate  that  she  dwelt  with  Bel  in  E-kur ,  "the 
mountain  house".  Under  the  name  of  Nin-har-sag,  Belit  had 
a  temple  also  at  Girsu,  one  of  the  divisions  of  the  town  of 
LagaS.  Nin-har-sag  was  sometimes  addressed  as  "the  mother  of 
the  gods". 

ba-e-di-hu-ldh-e  is  a  verb,  ha  is  an  indeterminate  verbal 
prefix.  Here  it  is  third  person  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  25).  e  (see 
Hymn  to  Bel,  line  18).  di  is  an  unusual  infix;  it  is  probably  used 
here  in  the  interest  of  vowel  harmony  for  da  (see  Hymn  to  Bel, 
line  16).  hu-ldh  is  the  verb  itself  and  is  equal  to  galdtu,  "frighten" 
(Br.  2076).  On  closer  analysis,  hu  must  be  a  prefix  of  generalization ; 
for  example  hu  may  equal  amelu,  "man"  (Br.  2050).  Idh  must 
be  the  real  verb;  it  is  equal  to  galdtu  (Br.  6166).  e  must  be 
a  vowel  of  prolongation.  The  usual  phonetic  complement  after 
Idh  is  ha. 

The  fear  of  the  lightning  of  Adad  in  this  hymn  is  somewhat 
like  that  expressed  in  the  Babylonian  Epic  of  GilgameS,  Eleventh 
Tablet.  The  lord  of  the  storm  caused  the  heavens  to  rain  heavily. 
There  arose  from  the  foundation  of  heaven  a  black  cloud.  The 
thunderbearers  marched  over  mountain  and  plain ,  and  Ninib  con- 
tinued pouring  out  rain  and  Adad's  violence  reached  to  heaven. 
The  southern  blast  blew  hard.  Like  a  battle-charge  upon  mankind 
the  waters  rushed.  One  could  no  longer  see  an  other.  The  gods 
were  dismayed  at  the  flood.  They  sought  refuge  by  ascending 
the  highest  heaven,  cowering  like  dogs.  On  the  battlements  of 
heaven    thy   crouched  and  Istar  screamed  like  a  woman  in  travail. 

15.  din9ir  En-lil-li  dumu-ni  dimmer  Mer-ra  h  mu-un-da-an-aka 
Bel  to  his  son  Mer  measures  out  power: 

dingir  En-lil-li:  Bel's  name  has  appeared  before  in  this  hymn, 
but  in  the  ES  form  (line  13).  dinair  En-lil  (see  Hymn  to  Sin, 
line  5).     It  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  23). 

dumu-ni:  (see  on  line  3).     ni  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line   13). 

a  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  14)  =  ID. 

mu-un-da-an-aka:  mu-un  (see  Hymn  to  Sin,  line  17).  da-an 
is  a  verbal  infix  (MSL.  pp.  XXIV  and  XXXII).  Its  antecedent 
here  is  dumu-ni.  aka:  we  have  had  aka  equal  to  ramdmu  (line  13), 
but  here  we  have  aka  equal  to  madddu,  "measure  out",  madddu, 
"measure  out",  is  a  pun  on  madddu,  "love"  (thus  MSL.  p.  21). 


—    64    — 

16.  mulu  dumu-mu  u  um-me-si-si-si  u  um-me-ki-ld-ld 
Thou  who  art  my  son,  the  day  thou  didst  lift  up  the  eye, 

the  day  thou  didst  look! 

mulu:  The  sign  is  the  usual  ideogram  for  •man",  but  may 
stand  for  the  Assyrian  s"a,  as  here.  Note  that  the  sign  takes  the 
value  lu  in  composition  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  20). 

dumu-mu:  dumu  (see  line  3).  mu  is  a  suffix  of  the  first 
person  (Br.  1241).  There  are  three  pronominal  mu's.  First,  the 
determinate  pronominal  suffix  mu  of  the  first  person,  cognate  with 
ma-e,  the  personal  pronoun  of  the  first  person ;  this  is  the  mu 
we  have  here.  Secondly,  there  is  a  mu  of  mu-un,  the  indeterminate 
verbal  prefix,  mun  or  mu-un  is  simply  this  mu  nasalized.  We 
have  had  this  mu  quite  often.  Finally,  there  is  another  mu,  an 
indeterminate  suffix,  which  is  related  to  mu  of  mu-un,  rather  than 
to  mu,  the  cognate  of  ma-e.  This  indeterminate  mu  is  found  at 
the  end  of  relative  clauses.  We  shall  meet  it  in  the  Hymn  to 
Tammuz  (see  below). 

H  (see  Hymn  to  Sin,  line  17). 

um-me-si-si-si  is  a  verb,  um-me  is  a  indeterminate  verbal 
prefix,  but  is  chosen  here  for  the  second  person,  since  mu-un  is 
so  often  used  for  the  third  person,  umme  is  not  a  very  common 
prefix.  It  stands  for  ume  which  is  a  shortened  form  of  umeni. 
it":  SI  with  the  value  ige  or  ide  we  have  seen  equals  mu,  *eye" 
(see  Hymn  to  Sin,  line  16).  it' here,  however,  seems  to  be  regarded 
as  a  part  of  the  verbal  stem  and  hence  slips  in  between  the  prefix 
and  the  root,  si-si  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  22).  The  Sumerian 
idiom  means  *fill  the  eye". 

um-me-Si-ld-ld:  um-me-Si  (just  explained).  Id-Id:  Id  is  a  value 
of  LALLU  which  occurs  as  a  phonetic  complement  in  the  word 
En-lil-ld  (Hymn  to  Sin,  line  5)  also  equals  naSu,  "lift  up"  (Br.  10101). 

17.  d*mmer  Mer-ri  u  um-me-Si-sisi  u  um-me-Hld-ld 

0  Adad,  the  day  thou  didst  lift  up  the  eye,  the  day  thou 
didst  look! 
dimmer  jj/g,.   (see   on  \[ne  2).     ri  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  19). 
u  um-me-si-si-si  u  um-me- si-ld-ld  (see  on  line  16). 

18.  u  iminna-bi-mes"  ba-gan-tal-ld  u  um-me- si-ld-ld 
During   those    seven    days   thou    didst  blow  a  full    blast, 

when  thou  didst  look. 

&  (see  Hymn  to  Sin,  line  17). 

iminna-bi-vieS:  iminna  is  the  Sumerian  word  for  "seven".  The 
sign  in  our  text  consists  of  seven  uprights,  four  above  and  three 
below.  The  Assyrian  form  consists  of  three  above,  three  in  the 
middle    and  one  at  the  bottom,     bi  is  the  demonstrative  pronoun 


—    65    — 

=  "those"  (Br.  5134  and  Hymn  to  Sin,  line  27).  mes  is  the 
Sumerian  sign  of  the  plural  number  (Br.  10470).  The  sign  is 
composed    of  ME  and  ES  and  means  'many". 

ba-gan-tal-ld:  ba  (see  on  line  14) ;  ba  =  prefix,  gan  is  an 
infix  here  of  adverbial  and  corroborative  character  (see  Hymn  to 
Bel,  line  9).  tal  is  a  value  of  RI  equal  to  zdku,  "blow"  (Br.  2581). 
We  assume  tal  to  be  the  correct  value  because  of  the  following 
LALLU  =  Id  (see  on  line  16). 

u  um-me-si-ld-ld  (see  line  16).  This  interesting  statement  on 
the  flood  agrees  entirely  with  the  story  of  the  flood  in  the  Eleventh 
Tablet  of  the  Babylonian  Epic  of  Gilgames.  The  difference  between 
the  length  of  the  Hebrew  and  that  of  the  Babylonian  deluge  is 
significant.  The  narrative  of  Pirnapistim ,  the  Babylonian  Noah, 
is  quite  graphic.  He  represents  the  gods  as  seated  weeping, 
their  lips  covered  in  fear.  Six  days  and  nights  the  wind  blew. 
When  the  seventh  day  appeared,  the  storm  subsided,  the  sea  began 
to  dry  and  the  flood  was  ended  He  looked  upon  the  sea,  man- 
kind was  turned  to  clay,  corpses  floated  like  reeds.  He  opened 
the  window.  He  sent  forth  a  dove  which  returned.  He  sent  forth 
a  raven ,  which  saw  the  carrion  on  the  water ,  ate,  and  wandered 
away,  but  did  not  return.  He  built  an  altar  on  the  peak  of  the 
mountain  and  set  forth  vessels  by  sevens.  The  gods  smelled  the 
savour  and  gathered  to  the  sacrifice,  and  the  great  goddess  lifted 
up  the  rainbow  which  Anu  had  created.  Those  days  he  thought 
upon  and  forgot  not. 

19.  u  I  di-zu-ka  har-ha-ra  ab-ba  u  um-me-si-ld-ld 

It  was  the  day  of  the  word  of  thy  judgment,  0  bull-god 
of  the  abyss,  the  day  thou  didst  look. 

u  (line  16). 

I  equals  amdtu,  "word"  (Br.  518,  see  also  Hymn  to  Sin,  line  16). 

di-zu-ha:  di  equals  denu,  "judgment"  (Br.  9525  and  Hymn 
to  Bel,  line  7).  zu  (Hymn  to  Bel,  line  21).  ka  =  nota  genitivi 
(Hymn  to  Bel,  line  1). 

har-ha-ra  is  the  same  as  hhr-har-a.  hhr  is  a  value  of  GUTTU, 
meaning  kardu,  "heroic  one"  (MSL.  p.  174).  We  have  had  the 
sign  with  the  value  gu  (Hymn  to  Bel,  line  9).  ha-ra,  phonetic 
representation  of  hhr-a,  with  the  same  meaning  as  hhr  of  GUTTU, 
plus  phonetic  complement. 

ab-ba:  ab  equals  tdnitu,  "sea"  (Br.  3822).  The  common  word 
for  "sea"  is  AB.ZU,  written  ZU.AB,  meaning  "sea  of  wisdom",  the 
abode  of  Ea,  the  god  of  wisdom,  ab  also  equals  aptu,  "abyss" 
(Br.  3815).     ab,  "sea",   or  "abyss"   is    a   shortened    form    of  a-ab, 

5 


—    66    — 

"water  enclosure",  'water  space".     AB  with  the  value  6s  we  have 
had  (Hymn  to  Sin,  line  10). 
u  um-me-si-ld-ld  (line  16). 

20.  nim-gir  luh  su-si-sii  mu-ra-du-ud 

As  the  lightning,    a  messenger  for  terror,   thou  didst    go. 

nim-gir  equals  birku,  "lightning"  (Br.  9020).  nim-gir  literally 
means  "high  lightning",  nim  equals  elu,  "high",  gir  alone  equals 
birlcu  (Br.  306).  The  sign  GIRU  in  its  primitive  form  is  a  picture 
of  a  "dagger".  From  the  conception  of  the  "dagger",  there  is,  of 
course,  but  a  short  step  to  that  of  the  forked  lightning. 

luh  equals  sulckallu,  "messenger"  (Br.  6170).  We  have  had 
the  sign  SUKKALLU  with  the  value  lah  (line  14,  lah,  and  Hymn 
to  Sin,  line  27). 

su-Si-Su  equals  noun  su-Si  and  postposition  sit.  su-si:  SU.SI 
means  "increase  of  eye"  and  equals  salummatu  which  means 
"splendour",  or  perhaps  "terror".  SU.SI  might  be  read  su-lim. 
SU.ZI,  however,  has  the  same  meaning  y(see  Br.  235  and  187,  also 
MSL.  p.  298),  proving  the  reading  SU.SI. 

mu-ra-du-ud:  mu  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  18).  ra  is  an  infix 
of  adverbial  character  denoting  motion  (MSL.  p.  XXIV).  du-ud  is 
no  doubt  for  du-du,  an  intensified  form  of  du  (see  Hymn  to  Bel, 
line  23,  gin). 

21.  mulu  dumu-mu  rii  gin-na-gin-na  a-ba  zi-gi-en  te-ga 
When   thou  who  art  my  son  goest  violently  about,    who 

can  attack  like  thee! 

mulu  dumu-mu  (see  on  line  16). 

ru  equals  nakdpu,  "break  forth  violently",  or  "storm  furiously", 
(Br.  9144).  Here  we  come  near  to  the  primary  idea  of  the  sign 
which  is  that  of  "the  goring  bull"  (see  Hymn  to  Sin,  line  14). 

gin-na-gin-na:  DU  =  aldku  may  have  any  one  of  three  values, 
gin,  turn  or  ra  (Br.  4871).  gin  is  the  correct  value  here,  as  is 
shown  by  the  phonetic  complement  na.  The  value  du  must  be 
closely  related  to  turn  and  gin.  du  by  change  of  d  to  t  and  by 
addition  of  the  nasal  m  becomes  turn,  turn  by  change  of  t  to  g, 
of  u  to  i  and  of  m  to  n  becomes  gin. 

a-ba  equals  mannu,  "who"  (Br.  11370).     See  also  below. 

zi-qi-en  probably  is  a  phonetic  and  dialectic  form  for  za-e-gim 
(line  22). 

te-ga:  te  equals  tehu,  "attack"  (Br.  7688).  ga:  BA  is  probably 
dialectic  for  ga  (Br.  103)  which  would  be  the  same  as  PISANNU, 
i.  e.,  ba$u}  "being",  or  §akdnu,  "establishing". 


—     67     — 

Reverse 

22.  ki-bala  hul  gig  a-a  muh-zu-su  a-ba  za-e-gim  te-ga 

The   troublesome    evil    hostile    land,    0    father,    which   is 
against  thee,  who  like  thee  can  attack! 

ki-bala:  ki  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  9).  bala  equals  palu, 
•weapon"  (Br.  276).  From  the  idea  of  "weapon",  it  is  easy  to 
pass  to  that  of  "hostility",  expressed  by  nukurtu  (Br.  272). 

hul  equals  limnu,  "bad"  (see  Br.  9502  and  Hymn  to  Sin, 
line  16,  hill). 

gig  equals  marsu,  "sick"  (Br.  9235).  The  sign  is  composite, 
the  principal  element  of  which  is  MI  meaning  "black". 

a-a  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  3). 

muh-zu-su:  muh  equals  eli,  "upon",  or  "against"  (Br.  8841). 
zu  (Hymn  to  Bel,  line  21).  sit  (Hymn  to  Bel,  line  15)  governs 
the  phrase  muh-zu. 

a-ba  (see  on  line  21). 

za-e-gim:  za-e  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  16).     gim  (see  line  12). 

te-ga  (see  on  line  21). 

23.  nd  imi  tur-tur-e  su-um-me-ti  a-ba  za-e-gim  te-ga 

The   little    stone    of  the   storm   do  thou  take.     Who  can 
attack  like  thee! 

nd:  DAKKU  has  three  values  for  abnu,  "stone",  za,  si  and  nd. 
We  have  also  had  the  sign  ZA  with  the  value  za  equal  to  abnu 
(line  13).     No  doubt  DAKKU  indicates  "hailstone"  here. 

imi  is  the  common  value  of  the  sign  IMMU  for  sdru,  "storm" 
(Br.  8369). 

tur-tur-e:  tur  (see  Hymn  to  Sin,  line  28,  ban-da).  The  sign 
is  DUMU  (lines  3,  15  and  16).     e  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  3). 

su-um-me-ti:  su  is  a  part  of  the  verbal  conjugation  (see  Hymn 
to  Bel,  line  25),  making  it  causal,  um-me  (see  on  line  16).  ti 
equals  laku,  "take"  (Br.  1700).  This  is  the  same  word  as  ti 
meaning  "life"  (Hymn  to  Bel,  line  16). 

a-ba  za-e-gim  te-ga  (see  on  line  22). 

24.  nd  gal-gal-e  su-um-me-ti  a-ba  za-e-gim  te-ga 

The  large  stone  do  thou  take.    Who  like  thee  can  attack! 

nd  (see  on  line  23). 

gal-gal-e:  gal  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  14).  e  (see  Hymn  to 
Bel,  line  3). 

su-um-me-ti  a-ba  za-e-gim  te-ga  (see  line  23). 

25.  nd  tur-tur-zu  nd  gal-gal-zu  muh-ba  u-me-dm 

Thy  little  stone,  thy  large  stone,  on  it  (the  land)  let  it  be! 

5* 


—    68    — 

nd  (see  on  line  23). 

(jal-qal-zu:  gal  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  14).  zu  (Hymn  to 
Bel,  line"  21). 

tur-tur-zu:  tur  (see  on  line  23). 

muh-ba:  muh  (see  line  22).  ba  is  a  pronominal  suffix  of  the 
third  person  singular  (Br.  114). 

ii-me-dm  verb  in  the  imperative  mood,  u-me,  the  same  as 
um-me  (line  16).     dm  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  12). 

26.  ki-bala-a  zi-da-zu  u-mu-e-gul  da  bur  su  ii-mu-e-se 

The  hostile  land  thy  right  hand  destroys.     It  gives  com- 
plete destruction  (?) 

ki-bala-a  (see  on  line  22).     a  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  9). 

zi-da-zu:  zi  equals  imnu,  "right  hand"  (Br.  2312).  da  is  a 
phonetic  complement  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  4).  zu  (see  Hymn 
to  Bel,  line  21). 

u-mu-e-gul:  u  is  an  indeterminate  verbal  prefix;  it  is  used 
of  the  third  person  (Br.  p.  547 ;  see  also  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  1). 
mu-e  constitutes  a  double  verbal  infix,  the  mu  being  pronominal 
and  the  e  adverbial,  mu  (see  line  16  and  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  18). 
e  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  18).    gul  equals  abdtu,  "destroy"  (Br.  8954). 

da  equals  idu,  "strength"  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  16).  bur 
equals  nasdhu,  "tear  away"  (Br.  7528).  The  sign  SLRU  occurs 
only  here  in  all  of  the  four  hymns  of  this  Thesis,  su  is  the 
common  word  for  "body",  represented  by  zumru  (Br.  172).  This 
translation  is  only  provisional. 

ii-mu-e-se:  u-mu-e  (just  explained)  se  equals  naddnu,  "give" 
(Br.  4418).  Briinnow  gives  to  the  sign  the  value  si,  when  it  stands 
for  naddnu. 

27.  dimmer  Jj^^-.ri  dug-dug-ga  a-a  muh-na-sii  ges-ni  ba-si-in-ag 
Adad,    when   he    speaks    (to    one),    0  father,    on    him    he 

imposes  his  government. 

dimmer  Mer-ri  (see  on  line  17). 

dug-dug-ga  is  a  /wri-clause  equal  to  "in  commanding",  dug 
(see  Hymn  to  Sin,  line  15). 

a-a  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  3). 

muh-na-sii:  muh.  (see  line  22).  na,  pronominal  suffix  of  the 
third  person  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  1).  su  (see  Hymn  to  Bel, 
line  15). 

ge$-ni:  ge§  equals  sutesuru,  "government"  (Br.  5706).  ni 
Hymn  to  Bel,  line  13). 

ba-H-in-ag:  ba  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  25).  Sufix  si-in  (see 
Hymn  to  Sin,  line  16).     ag  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  25). 


—    69    — 

28.  a-a  ^mm«r  Mer  e-ta  c-a-ni  u  \  di  na-nam 

Father  Adad,    when   he    comes   out  of  the  house  he  fixes 
the  day  of  judgment. 

e-ta:  e  (see  Hymn  to  Sin,  line  3)  ta  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  15). 

i-a-ni:  e  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  15).  a  is  a  vowel  of  pro- 
longation, which  c  is  accustomed  to  take  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  9). 
ni  (see  (Hymn  to  Bel,  line  13). 

u  (see  Hymn  to  Sin,  line   17). 

i  (see  on  line  19). 

di  (see  on  line  19). 

na-nam :  na  is  an  indeterminate  verbal  prefix  (see  MSL.  p.  XXIV 
and  Hymn  to  Bel,  lines  1  and  18).  nam  evidently  a  verb  here, 
equals  simtu,  "fixing"  (Br.  2103). 

29.  e-ta  eri-ta  e-a-ni  uku  dan-da  na-nam 

When  he    comes    out   of  the   house  out  of  the  city,    he 
fixes  the  mighty  day. 

e-ta  (see  on  line  28). 
eri-ta:  eri  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  fine  13). 
S-a-ni  (see  on  line  28). 
uku  (see  on  line  9). 

ban-da  equals  ekdu,    "strong"  (Br.  4127).     ban-da,  following 
the  idea  "strength",  also  equals  "youDg"  (see  Hymn  to  Sin,  line  28). 
na-nam  (see  line  28). 

30.  eri-ta  an-na-ta  gar-rani  u  I  har-ra  na-nam 

When  he  establishes  himself  out  of  the  city,  out  of  heaven, 
he  fixes  the  day  of  curse. 

eri-ta  (see  line  29. 

anna-ta:  an-na  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  18).  ta  (see  Hymn 
to  Bel,  line  15). 

gar-ra-ni:  gar  equals  iakdnu,  "establish"  (Br.  11978).  ra, 
phonetic  complement,  (Hym  to  Bel,  line  3).     ni  (see  line  28). 

u  (see  Hymn  to  Sin,  line  17). 

\  (see  on  line  19). 

har-ra:  har  equals  usurtu,  "curse"  (Br.  8545).  ra,  phonetic 
complement. 

na-nam  (see  on  line  28). 

81.   .  .  £r  lim-ma  dimmer  j/^ 
....  Hymn  to  Adad. 


—    70    — 
Chapter  IV 

Tablet  29628,  Plate  19,  Hymn  to  Tammuz 

Obverse 

1.  ies-e  tus(KXJ)-e-na  eri  er(A.SI)-ra  na-nam 

To   the  brother  whose  dwelling  is  the  city  of  weeping,    thus : 

2.  a-kala  ses-e  tab  An-na 

The  mightiness  of  the  brother,  the  companion  of  Anu! 

3.  a-kala  h(ID)-ba  en  dimmer  Dumu{T\JR)-zi 

The  mightiness  of  his  power,  the  lord  Tammuz! 

4.  duwiu(TUR)  e(BYT)-gal-a-ni  nu  mu-un-su(SUD,S\JG)-ga-mu 
The  son  whose  temple  is  not  far  away! 

5.  azag  dimmer  JSJand-geQLYI)  £(BIT)  An-na-ka  im-me 
The  shining  one  of  Istar,  who  is  in  the  house  of  Anu! 

6.  mulu  u-sun-na-ge(KIT)  nu  mu-un-su-ga-mu 

The  one  of  plant-germination,  who  is  not  far  away! 

7.  azag  dimmer  Nand-ge(KlT)  za  NANNA  Unw#(UNU)-w-A;a  im-me 
The  shining  one  of  Ktar,  who  is  the  NANNA-stone  of  Erech! 

8.  mulu  zib(KA)-ba-ra-ge(KlT)  nu  mu-un-su(SUD,SXJG)-ga-mu 
The  one  of  speech,  who  is  not  far  away! 

9.  bara-ka  azag  dimmer  Nand-ge(KlT)  te  ki-ka  im-me 

In  the  temple,  the  shining  one  of  Istar,  who  is  the  foundation 
of  the  land! 

10.  mulu  ka-ds-ka-sa-ge(KIT)  nu  mu-un-su(S\JD,SXJG)-ga-mu 
The  one  of  much  wine,  who  is  not  far  away! 

11.  azag  dinuner  Nana- ge(KlT)  Sh(LlB)-mu  u-sun  mu-un-simal(IG) 
The  shining  one  of  Istar,  whose  heart  is  full  of  plant-production ! 

12.  mulu  hul-mal(IG)  nu  mu-un-su-ga-mu 

The  one  enduring  evil,  who  is  not  far  away! 

13.  dimmer  mui!m(GE§TIN)  An-na-ge{KlT)  ka$(Bl)-ra-bi  mu-un- 

sub(RXJ) 
The  wine-god  of  Anu,  to  whom  they  present  their  offering! 

14.  mulu  it-sun-na-ge(KlT)  a-na-am(A.AN)  su-ba  ab-ru(UL) 
The  one  of  plant-germination,  what  does  his  hand  ordain! 

15.  mulu  zib(KA.)-ba-ra-ge(KIT) 
The  one  of  speech! 

16.  mulu  ka-d,i-ka-sa-ge(KlT) 
The  one  of  much  wine! 


—     71     — 

17.  mulu  hul-mal(~LG)  ana-dm(A. AN)  su-ba  ab-gin(DJJ) 
The  one  who  endures  evil,  whither  does  his  hand  go! 

18.  dimmer   Tnwtfn(GESTIN)   An-na-ge(KlT)   PAHADU   sigisse-ra 

mu-un-sub(KU)-bi 
The  wine-god  of  Anu,  to  whom  they  offer  the  lamb  of  sacrifice ! 

19.  nim-me  azag  dimmer  Nand-ra  1(KA)  mu-un-na-ab-e-e 

The  lofty  one,  the  shining  one  of  I§tar,  to  whom  they  speak! 

20.  nim-me  ki  mu-lu  ni  ma-ra  an-pad-de(NE)  a-na  mu-un-ba-e-e 
The   lofty    one  of  earth  who  is  the  abundance  of  the  land,  to 

wbom  they  speak!  what  do  they  say? 

21.  2(BIT)  kas(BI)-a-ka  e(BIT)  gurun(KlL)-na-ka  dumu(TXJ~R)  mu- 

lu azag  zu-ge(KIT)  ne-ne  mu-un-til-li 
In    the  house    of   wine,    in    the    house  of  fruit,    the  son,    the 
shining  one  of  wisdom,  who  indeed  lives! 

22.  nim-me   azag   dimmer   ?nwfrVi(GESTIN)    An-na-ge(KIT)   t(KA) 

mu-un-na-ab-e-e 
The  lofty  one,  the  shining  one,  the  wine-god  of  Anu,  to  whom 
they  speak! 

23.  nim-me  ki  ses  ma-ra  an-pad-de(!$E)  a-tta-aWi(A.AN)  mu-un- 

ma-al 
The    lofty   one    of  earth,   the  brother   of  the  land,    to  whom 
they  speak!  what  is  it  (that  they  say)? 

Reverse 

24.  a(BIT)  kas(BI)-a-ka  e(BIT)  gurun(KIL)-na-ka  dumu(TTJR)  mulu 

azag  zu-ge(KIT)  sigisse-sag  tuk-a-na 
In    the   house    of  wine,   in  the  house  of  fruit,    the  son,    the 
shining  one  of  wisdom,   who  has  a  great  sacrifice! 

25.  ur-sag  9%  ku-a  sag-mal-mal-ge(KIT) 
The  hero  of  great  weapons! 

26.  dimmer   mutin   (GESTIN)  An-na-ge(KIT)   u-sun-na   sag-mal- 

mal-ge(KIT) 
The  wine-god  of  Anu,  the  great  plant-germinator ! 

27.  u-sun  gurun(KlL)-gurun(KIL)   u-sun  gurun(KXL)-gurun(KlL) 

ses-mu  u-sun  gurun(KIL)-gurun(KIL) 
The  germinator  of  many  fruits,  the  germinator  of  many  fruits, 
my  brother,  the  germinator  of  many  fruits! 

28.  u-sun  a-ra-li  u-sun  gurun(KIL)-gurun(KIL)  ses-mu  u-sun  gu- 

run(EILygurun(KIL) 
The    germinator    of  the   lower  world,  the  germinator  of  many 
fruits,  my  brother,  the  germinator  of  may  fruits! 


—     72    — 

29.  in-nu    y/S(U§)  0"  gu-ga-<je(K.YY)    tal{k&)-ta-al-ta-al    mu-ib-rd 

(DU)-m(DU) 
The  vegetable-germinator,  the  only  plant- begetter,  who  goeth  forth ! 

30.  dumu(T\]R)  zi-ga-na  ga-ni  sa(LlB)-zi-zi  mu-ib-rd(D\J) 
The  son  of  life;  in  his  fulness,  in  the  midst  of  life  goeth. 

31.  e$  dis  er(A.SI)-lim(LIB)-ma  dimmer  Bumu-zida-kam 
Thirty  lines.     Hymn  to  Tammuz. 

The  salient  phases  of  the  rounded  out  Tammuz  story  are 
touched  upon  in  this  hymn;  viz.,  his  local  dwelling  in  a  city  where  he 
had  a  temple;  the  memorial  weeping;  his  relation  to  Anu;  his 
lordly  power;  his  specification  as  "a  brother";  his  relation  to  the 
goddess  Bitar;  his  characteristic  and  supreme  function  of  plant- 
germination.  Note  also  that  he  was  the  agricultural  god  of  spring 
vegetation.  Offerings  of  wine  were  poured  out  over  his. bier,  he 
having  been  humbled  to  sorrow  by  banishment  to  the  lower  world, 
where  he  became  a  lord  over  the  occult  and  internal  forces  in- 
herent beneath  the  soil  of  the  earth.  So  he  became  a  god  of  a 
new  life.  The  hymn  does  not  seem  altogether  to  confine  the 
germinating  work  of  Tammuz  to  the  vegetation  of  spring  growth, 
but  appears ,  especially  in  the  Reverse ,  to  include  fruit  growing 
which  might  come  later  in  the  season.  Possibly  this  hymn  was 
sung  as  a  dirge  at  Babylonian  anniversaries  for  the  departed 
Tammuz.  The  Babylonians  at  the  time  of  the  summer  solstice 
annually  commemorated  with  lamentation  the  departure  of  Tammuz 
to  the  lower  world.  He  had  instructed  them  that  they  should 
gather  at  his  bier  and  that  hired  musicians  should  sing  and  play 
and  that  the  people  should  sacrifice  and  drink  wine. 

Obverse 

1.  ses-e  tus-e-na  eri  er-ra  na-nam 

To  the  brother  whose  dwelling  is  the  city  of  weeping,  thus: 

Ses-e:  ses  same  as  Sis  (Hymn  to  Sin,  line  2).  e  equals  ana, 
"to"  (Br.  5847). 

tuS-e-na:  tuS  equals  asdhu,  "dwell"  (Br.  10523).  Probably 
the  sign  has  the  same  value  for  subtu,  "dwelling"  (Br.  10553).  We 
have  had  the  sign  (KU)  with  the  value  Sit  (Hymn  to  Bel,  line  15). 
e,  vowel  of  prolongation,  na,  pronominal  suffix  (see  Hymn  to 
Adad,  line  27). 

eri  (Hymn  to  Bel,  line   13). 

er-ra:  er  (Hymn  to  Bel,  Colophon),  ra,  phonetic  complement 
(Hymn  to  Bel,  line  3). 

na-nam  equals  kiam,  "thus"  (see  Br.  1597  and  Hymn  to 
Adad,    line  28).     The    words    "0  my   brother"    are    represented    in 


—     73     — 

legend  as  being  first  uttered  by  the  sister  of  Tarnmuz  and  then 
taken  up  by  other  mourners.  Probably  the  custom  of  weeping  for 
Tammuz  originated  in  the  city  of  Eridu. 

2.  a-kala  ses-e  tab  An-na 

The  mightiness  of  the  brother,  the  companion  of  Anu! 

a-kala  is  an  abstract  noun  like  nam-kala  which  is  equal  to 
dannutu  (Br.  6194).  a  is  an  abstract  prefix,  as  in  A.DU,  equal 
to  a-rd,  "going"  (MSL.  p.  XVII).  kala  equal  dannu,  "mighty" 
(Br.  6194). 

ses-e.  See  on  ses  (Yme  1).  e,  probably  sign  of  the  genitive, 
if  not  merely  a  vowel  of  prolongation.  It  can  certainly  be  a  post- 
position (see  on  line  1). 

tab  (see  Hymn  to  Adad,  line  6). 

An-na  (see  Hymn  to  Adad,  line  3  and  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  18). 
Tammuz  was  a  companion  of  Giszida  in  the  dominion  of  Anu. 
Giszida  was  also  a  god  of  vegetable  growth.  At  a  certain  period 
of  the  year,  Tammuz  and  Giszida  were  stationed  in  companionship 
as  attendants  at  the  gate  of  heaven.  Here  the  power  of  Tammuz 
to  cause  vegetation  to  grow  began  to  be  effective.  He  was,  in 
the  first  days  of  his  existence,  a  sun-god,  and,  stationed  in  heaven, 
the  rays  of  his  power  were  felt  on  earth.  So,  probably  every 
year,  at  the  time  of  spring  growth,  he  was  conceived  of  as  operating 
from  heaven  like  a  sun. 

3.  a-kala  aba  en  dimmer  Dumu-zi 

The  mightiness  of  his  power,  the  lord  Tammuz ! 

a-kala  (see  on  line  2). 

h-ba:  a  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  14).    ba  (Hymn  to  Adad,  line  25). 
en  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  19). 

dimmer  Dumu.zim  Dumu-zi  means  "son  of  life".  Dumu  (Hymn 
to  Sin,  line   5).     zi  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  23). 

4.  dumu  e-gal-ani  nu  mu-un-su-ga-mu 
The  son  whose  temple  is  not  far  away! 

dumu  (see  Hymn  to  Sin,  line  5,  tu-mu). 

<}-gal-a-ni:  e-gal  equals  ekallu,  "temple",  (Br.  6252).  E.GAL, 
"great  house",  is  the  common  compound  ideogram  for  "temple", 
both  in  Sumerian  and  Assyrian.  The  Assyrian  ekallu  is  evidently 
the  Sumerian  £,  plus  gal  which  is  changed  to  kal.  The  word  has 
passed  over  into  Hebrew,  Syriac  and  Arabic,  e  (see  Hymn  to 
Sin,  line  3).  gal  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  14).  %-gal  is  often 
followed  by  la;  here,  however,  it  is  followed  by  a,  showing  that 
the  phonetic  use  of  la  and  a  is  quite  similar,  ni  (see  Hymn  to 
Bel,  line  13). 


—     74     — 

nu  (Hymn  to  Sin,  line  27). 

mu-un-su-ga-mu  is  a  verb  and  seems  to  mean  "who  is  far 
away".  The  clause  occurs  also  in  lines  six,  eight,  ten  and  twelve, 
only  that  in  lines  six  and  twelve  SU  is  used  instead  of  SUD. 
mu-un  (see  Hymn  to  Sin,  line  17).  su:  SUD  seems  to  equal 
ruku,  "distant",  here.  Yet  when  it  is  equal  to  ruku,  it  generally 
has  the  value  sud  and  is  followed  by  the  phonetic  complement 
da;  here  it  is  followed  by  ga.  So  the  value  should  be  sug  or 
su.  mu  is  a  relative  suffix  related  to  mu  of  mu-un  (see  Hymn 
to  Adad,  line  16). 

5.  azag  dimmer  Nand-ge  £  An-na-ka  im-me 

The  shining  one  of  Istar,  who  is  in  the  house  of  Anu! 

azag  (see  Hymn  to  Sin,  line   1). 

dimmer  2^and-ge.  Nana,  also  written  Nanna,  is  the  Sumerian 
name  of  I&tar.  NANNU  is  sometimes  written  like  RI  which,  when 
preceded  by  the  god-sign,  also  equals  "Istar".  ge  (see  Hymn  to 
Adad,  line  4). 

1  (see  Hymn  to  Sin,  line  3). 

An-na-ka  (see  Hymn  to  Adad,  line  4).  ka  equals  nota  genitivi 
(see  Br.  551  and  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  1). 

im-me:  im  (see  Hymn  to  Sin,  line  23).  me  (Hymn  to  Bel, 
line  16).  Tammuz  seems  to  be  the  shining  one.  The  epithet 
"shining"  is  sometimes  applied  to  gods ,  goddesses ,  kings,  princes 
and  others.  The  primary  relaltion  of  Tammuz  was  that  of  lover. 
But  in  the  lower  world  he  made  love  to  another.  But  each  year 
during  the  season  of  vegetable  growth  he  was  supposed  to  be 
living  with  Istar  and  during  the  season  of  vegetable  decline  he 
was  supposed  to  be  living  with  the  other  whom  he  loved  in  the 
regions  below.  The  house  of  Anu  might  mean  the  temple  of  Anu, 
but  the  reference  in  this  line  is  no  doubt  to  heaven,  over  which 
Anu  was  lord  and  at  whose  portals  Tammuz  sometimes  acted 
as  porter. 

6.  midu  ii-sun-na-ge  nu  mu-un-su-ga-mu 

The  one  of  plant-germination,  who  is  not  far  away! 

midu  (see  Hymn  to  Adad,  line  16). 

ii-sun-na-ge:  ic-sun  seems  to  be  a  compound  noun  meaning 
"plant-growing".  It  occurs  eight  times  in  the  hymn,  u  equals 
sammu,  "plant"  (Br.  6027).  It  is  sometime  a  determinative 
before  the  name  of  a  plant  (Br.  6029).  sun  means  "irrigate" 
(MSL.  299).  It  is  improbable  that  this  sign  is  KIB.  ge  (see  Hymn 
to  Adad,  line  4). 

nu  (see  Hymn  to  Sin,  line  27). 

mu-un-su-ga-mu  (see  line  4).  su(SU)  and  5u(SUD,SUG)  are 
interchangeable  (Br.  7593). 


—    75    — 

7.  azag  dimmer  Nand-ge  za  NANNA  Unugka  im-me 

The  shining  one  of  Istar,  who  is  the  NANNA-stone  of  Erech! 

azag  dimmer  Bana-ge  (see  on  line  5). 

za:  the  probable  meaning  of  za  here  is  "stone"  (see  Hymy  to 
Adad,  line  13). 

NANNA:  there  are  no  citations  in  Briinnow  showing  the 
meaning  of  NANNA  when  standing  alone.  za-NANNA-oV  equals 
mammu ,  "snow",  and  y  za-NANNA  may  mean  "white  stone".  If 
NANNA  can  equal  USLANU-GUNU,  then  it  can  mean  nasdku 
(Br.  3019)  and  za-NANNA  means  "shining  stone".  It  may  be  that 
NANNA  stands  for  USLANU-GUNU,  then  ZA.NANNA.UNU.KI 
could  be  equal  to  Unug-ki  (Br.  11749),  and  the  line  would  read 
azag  dimmer  Band-ge  Unug-ki-ka  im-me,  "the  shining  one  of  Istar  of 
Erech  he  is". 

Unug:  that  Unug  is  the  correct  value  is  shown  by  the  phonetic 
complement  ga  that  often  follows  UNU.  Erech,  we  know,  was  the 
city  of  Istar  (Br.  3023).    unu  (see  Hymn  to  Sin,  line  2).    ka  (line  5) 

im-me  (see  on  line  5). 

8.  mulu  zib-ba-ra-ge  nu  mu-un-su-ga-mu 
The  one  of  speech,  who  is  not  far  away! 

mulu  (see  Hymn  to  Adad,  line  16). 

zib-ba-ra-ge:  zib-ba  (see  Hymn  to  Sin,  line  16,  gu).  ra  must 
answer  for  vowel  prolongation  (Hymn  to  Bel,  line  3).  ge  (see 
Hymn  to  Adad,  line  4).  "One  of  speech"  must  mean  the  god 
endowed  with  authoritative  utterance  on  the  subject  of  germination. 

nu  mu-un-su-ga-mu  (see  on  line  4). 

9.  bara-ka  azag  dimmer  Band-ge  te  ki-ka  im-me 

In   the    temple  the  shining  one  of  Istar,  who  is  the  foun- 
dation of  the  land! 

bara-ka :  bara  equals  parakku,  "dwelling  room  in  the  temple" 
(Br.  6878).     ka  (line  5). 

azag  dimmer  JSfand-ge  (line  5). 

te  equals  temennu,  "foundation"  (Br.  7710). 

ki-ka:  ki  (Hymn  to  Bel,  line  9).     ka  (Hymn  to  Bel,  line  1). 

im-me  (line  5). 

10.  mulu  ka-ds-ka-sa-ge  nu  mu-un-su-ga-mu 
The  one  of  much  wine,  who  is  not  far  away! 

mulu  (see  Hymn  to  Adad,  line  16). 

ka-ds  is  evidently  a  phonetic  representation  of  kas(BT),  cognate 
with  ges  in  gestin  and  equal  to  kardnu,  "wine"  (Br.  5121,  5004 
and  5006). 


—     76    — 

ka-sa-ge:  ka-sa  may  be  a  phonetic  form  for  kas  equal  to 
.shtd,  'two"  (Br.  4459).  Perhaps  it  would  he  better  to  consider 
ka-di  ka-sa  as  a  reduplication  of  kas",  as  kas-kas($)  =  "much 
wine",  ge  (Hymn  to  Adad ,  line  4).  One  form  of  the  legend 
makes  Tammuz  the  begetter  of  autumn  vegetation.  If  so,  he  is 
the  producer  of  much  wine.  More  likely  the  meaning  is  that,  on 
his  account,  much  wine  was  offered  in  the  service  of  lamentation 
at  his  departure. 

nu  mu-un-su-ga-mu  (see  on  line  4). 

11.  azag  dimmer  Nand-ge  sh-mu  u-sun  mu-un-si-mal 

The  shiningone  of  Istar,  whose  heart  is  full  of  plant-production! 

azag  dimmer  JSfand-ge  (line  5). 

sh-mu:  sh  Hymn  to  Sin,  line  9,  Hag).    Relative  mu  (see  line  4). 

■ti-sun  (line  U). 

mu-un-si-mal.  mu-un  (see  Hymn  to  Sin,  line  17).  si  (see 
Hymn  to  Bel,  line  22).  mal  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  18).  Plant 
growth  is  a  matter  of  intelligent  devising  on  the  part  of  Tammuz. 

12.  mulu  hul-mal  nu  mu-un-su-ga-mu 

The  one  enduring  evil,  who  is  not  far  away! 

mulu  (see  Hymn  to  Adad,  line  16). 

hul-mal  equals  limnu,    "evil"  (Br.  9508).     hul  equals  limenu. 
"be  evil",     mal  (Hymn  to  Bel,  line   18). 
nu  mu-un-su-ga-mu  (line  6). 

13.  dimmer  mutin  An-na-gc  kas-ra-bi  mu-un-sub 

The  wine-god  of  Anu,  to  whom  they  present  their  offering! 

mutin  is  "wood  of  life",  mu  being  E3  for  ges,  "wood",  and 
tin  being  for  ti  (Hymn  to  Bel,  line   16). 

An-na-ge:  An-na  (see  Hymn  to  Adad,  line  3).  ge  (Hymn 
to  Adad,  line  4). 

kas-ra-bi:  ka.1  equals  iikaru,  "strong  drink"  (Br.  5126).  ra 
answers  as  a  vowel  of  prolongation  (Hymn  to  Bel.  line  3).  If  ra 
were  a  postposition ,  it  would  follow  the  suffix  bi  (on  which  see 
Hymn  to  Sin,  line  27). 

mu-un-sub:  mu-un  (Hymn  to  Sin,  line  17).  sub  equals  nadu 
"cast  down"  (Br.  1434).  RU  signifies  "bent  down".  The  attitude 
of  the  mourners  may  be  noted. 

14.  mulu  ti-sun-na-ge  a-na-dm  su-ba  ab-rii 

The  one  of  plant-germination,  what  does  his  hand  ordain ! 

mulu  u-sun-na-ge  (see  line  6). 

a-na-dm  equals  minammi  (Br.  11436)  which  is  the  same  as 
minu  "what?"  (Br.  11434).  Note  that  a-ba  (Hymn  to  Adad, 
line  21)  equals  mannu,  "who?" 


—     77     - 

M-ba:  su  (Hymn  to  Bel,  line  25).  ba  (see  Hymn  to  Adad, 
line  25). 

ab-ru:  ab  (Hymn  to  Bel,  line  16).     rii  (Hymn  to  Sin,  line  14). 

15.  mulu  zib-ba-ra-ge 
The  one  of  speech! 

See  line  8. 

16.  mulu  ka-d-s-ka-sa-ge 
The  one  of  much  wine! 

See  line  10. 

17.  mulu  hul-mal  a-na-dm  M-ba  ab-gin 

The  one  who  endures  evil,  whither  does  his  hand  go! 

mulu  hul-mal  (line  12) 

a-na-hm  su-ba  (line  14). 

ab-gin:  ab  (Hymn  to  Bel,  line  16).    gin  (Hymn  to  Bel,  line  23). 

18.  dimmer  mutin  An-nage  PAHADU  sigisse-ra  mu-un-sub-bi 
The  wine-god  of  Ami,  to  whom  they  offer  the  lamb  of  sacrifice! 

dimmer  mutin  An-ua-ge  (line  13). 

PAHADU,  Assyrian  for  "lamb".  The  sign  is  PISANNU  en- 
closing GESTARU  (Br.  5489).  The  Sumerian  value  of  the  sign 
is  not  known.  Among  the  few  citations  in  which  the  sign  appears, 
a  female  lamb  is  mentioned  (Br.   10946). 

sigUse-ra:  sigisse  equals  niku,  "sacrifice",  and  ra  answers  as 
a  vowel  of  prolongation  which  the  sign  takes  (Br.  9092). 

mu-un-sub-bi:  mu-un-sub  (line  13).  bi  is  a  phonetic  complement. 

19.  nim-me  azag  dimmer  Nand-ra  I  mu-un-na-ab-e-e 

The  lofty  one,  the  shining  one  of  Istar,  to  whom  they  speak. 

nim-me:  nim  (see  Hymn  to  Adad,  line  20).  me,  phonetic 
complement. 

azag  (Hymn  to  Sin,  line  1.) 

dimmer  Nand-ra:  dimmer  ]$and  (line  5)    m  (Hymn  to  Bel,  line  3). 

I  (Hymn  to  Adad,  line   19). 

mu-un-na-ab-e-e:  mu-un  (Hymn  to  Sin,  line  17).  na-ab  is  a 
verbal  infix  =  "to  him",  third  person  here  (MSL.  p.  XXXII).  e-e 
(Hymn  to  Bel,  line  14). 

20.  nim-me  ki  mu-lu  ni  ma-ra  an-pad-de  a-na  mu-un-ba-e-e 
The    lofty  one  of  the  earth  who  is  the  abundance  of  the 

land,  to  whom  they  speak.     What  doth  he  say! 
nim-me  (line  19). 
ki  (Hymn  to  Bel,  line  9). 
mu-lu  (Hymn  to  Bel,  line  20). 
ni  (Hymn  to  Bel,  line  13). 


—    78    — 

an-pad-de:  an  (Hymn  to  Adad,  line  1).  pad  (Hymn  to  Sin, 
line  10).     de,  phonetic  complement. 

a-na  equals  minu,  "what"  (Br.  11434),  the  same  as  a-na-dm 
(line  14). 

mu-un-ba-e-e:  mu-un  (Hymn  to  Sin,  line  17).  ba  may  be 
used  as  an  infix  as  well  as  a  prefix  (MSL.  p.  XXIV,  and  Hymn  to 
Bel,  lines  24  and  25).     e-e  (line  19). 

21.  £  kas-a-ka  e~  gurun-na-ka  dumu  mu-lu  azag  zu-ge  ne-ne 

mu-un-til-li 
In  the  house  of  wine,  in  the  house  of  fruit,  the  son,  the 
shining  one  of  wisdom,  who  indeed  liveth! 

kaS-a-ka:  kas  (line  13).     a  (Hymn  to  Bel.  line  9).    ka  (line  5). 

gurun-na-ka:  gurun  equals  inbu ,  "fruit"  (Br.  10179).  na, 
phonetic  complement,     ka  (just  explained). 

dumu  (Hymn  to  Sin,  line  5). 

mu-lu  (Hymn  to  Bel,  line  20). 

azag  (Hymn  to  Sin,  line  1). 

zu-ge:  zu  (Hymn  to  Bel,  line  1).     ge  (Hymn  to  Adad,  line  4). 

ne-ne  (Hymn  to  Bel,  line  21). 

mu-un-til-li:  mu-un  (Hymn  to  Sin,  line  17).  til  is  probably 
the  longer  form  of  ti  (Hymn  to  Bel,  line  16). 

22.  nim-me  azag  dimmer  mutin  An-na-ge  I  mu-un-na-ab-e-e 
The  lofty  one,  the  shining  one,  the  wine-god  of  Anu,  to 

whom  they  speak! 
nim-me  azag  (line   19). 
dimmer  mutin  An-na-ge  (line   13). 
I  mu-un-na-ab-e-e  (line  19). 

23.  nim-me  ki  ses  ma-ra  an-pad-de  a-na-dm  mu-un-ma-al 
The  lofty  one  of  earth,  the  brother  of  the  land ,  to  whom 

they  speak !    What  doth  his  hand  effect! 
nim-me  ki  (line  20). 
ses  (line  1). 

ma-ra  (Hymn  to  Sin,  line   16). 
an-pad-de  (line  20). 
a-na-dm  (line  14). 

mu-un-ma-al:  mu-un  (Hymn  to  Sin,  line  17).  ma-al  is  the 
verb  (Hymn  to  Bel,  line  11). 

Reverse 

24.  e  kaS-a-ka  d  gurun-na-ka  dumu  mulu  azag  zu-ge  sigiSSe 

sag  tuk-a-na 
In  the  house  of  wine,  in  the  house  of  fruit,  the  son,  the 
shining  one  of  wisdom,  who  has  a  great  sacrifice! 


—    79    — 

£  kas-a-ka  e  gurun-na-nka  dumu  mulu  azag  zu-ge  (line  21). 

sigisse  (line  18). 

sag  (Hymn  to  Bel,  line  5). 

tuk-a-na:  tuk  equals  isu,  "have"  (Br.  11237).  a,  vowel  of 
prolongation  (Hymn  to  Bel,  line  9).  na,  suffix  of  the  third  person 
(Hymn  to  Bel,  line  1). 

25.  ur-sag  *"*  ku-a  sag-mal-mal-ge 
The  hero  of  great  weapons! 

ur  equals  amelu,  "man"  (Br.  11256). 

sag  (Hymn  to  Bel,  line  5).  ur-sag  means  "head-man",  and  is 
also  equal  to  karradu,  "mighty  one". 

9*$  ku-a:  ^equals  isu,  "wood",  and  is  a  determinative  before 
names  of  things  made  of  wood,  ku  equals  b&lu,  "weapon",  perhaps 
sacrificial  implements,     a,  vowel  of  prolongation. 

sag-mal-mal-ge:  sag  (just  explained),  mal-mal:  PISANNU 
is  dialectic  for  either  MA.AL  "or  IKU  and  as  a  suffix  makes  an 
adjective  of  a  noun  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  lines  1  and  18).  ge  (see 
Hymn  to  Adad,  line  4). 

26.  dimmer  mutin  An-na-ge  u-sun-na  sag-mal-mal-ge 
The  wine  god  of  Anu,  the  great  plant-germinator! 

dimmer  mutin  An-na-ge  (line  13). 

usun-na  (line  6). 

sag  mal-mal-ge  (line  25). 

27.  li-sun   gurun-gurun    u-sun   gurun-gurun    ses-mu   u-sun 

gurun-gurun 
The  germinator  of  many  fruits ,    the  germinator  of  many 
fruits,  my  brother,  the  germinator  of  many  fruits! 

u-sun  (line  6). 

gurun-gurun,  plural  form  of  gurun  (line  21). 

Ses-mu:  ses  (line  1).     mu  (Hymn  to  Adad,  line  16). 

28.  u-sun  a-ra-liu-sun gurun-gurun ses-muu-sun  gurun-gurun 
The  germinator  of  the  lower  world,  the  germinator  of  many 

fruits,  my  brother,  the  germinator  of  many  fruits! 

u-sun  (line  6). 

a-ra-li  has  passed  over  into  Assyrian  as  arallu,  "lower  world". 
a-ra-li  is  phonetic.  There  is  a  sign,  URUGAL,  translated  by 
arallu.  URUGAL  consists  of  the  "enclosure"  sign  containing  the 
sign  GAL  and  means  "great  house",  e-kur-be  is  also  translated 
by  arallu  and  is  equal  to  bit  muti,  "house  of  the  dead"  (Br.  6259); 
more  literally  the  meaning  is  "house  of  the  land  of  the  dead". 

u-sun  gurun-gurun  ses-mu  (line  27). 


—    80    — 

29.  in-nu  yQ  9&-yu-ya-ye  thl-ta-al-ta-al  mu-ib-rd-rd 

The  vegetable  germinator(?),  the  only  plant  begetter,  who 
goeth  forth! 

in-nu  might  equal  tibnu,  'straw",  "vegetation"  (Br.  4231). 
Perhaps  it  would  be  better  to  take  in-nu  as  a  verb  meaning  "he 
is  the  one  who",  in  being  a  verbal  prefix  and  nu  the  verbal  stem 
in  the  sense  of  zikaru  (Br.  1964),   as  in  nu-banda  (MSL.  264). 

y/'s:    US  with    the    value  yd  equals  rihu,  "beget"  (Br.  5042). 

oiS  yu-yaye:  O1*  (see  line  25).  yu  (Hymn  to  Bel,  line  20).  ya 
answers  as  a  vowel  of  prolongation.     ye  (Hymn  to  Adad,  line  4). 

thl-ta-al-ta-al:  thl  is  the  value  of  AS  required  by  the  phonetic 
gloss  ta-al-taal. 

mu-ib-rd-rd:  mu  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  line  18).  ib  is  a  modal 
verbal  infix  (MSL.  p.  XXIV).  rd  is  a  value  of  DU  (see  Hymn  to 
Adad,  line  21,  yin). 

30.  dumu  zi-ya-na  ya-ni  Sh-zi-zi  mu-ib-rd 

The  son  of  life,  his  fulness  in  the  midst  of  life  goeth  forth. 

dumu  (Hymn  to  Sin,  line  5). 

zi-ya-na:  zi  (Hymn  to  Bel,  line  23).  ya  serves  for  vowel 
prolongation,     na  is  postpositional. 

ya-ni:  ya  (Hymn  to  Bel,  line  12).  ni  may  be  taken  as  the 
possessive  suffix  of  the  third  person. 

§h-zi-zi:  $h  (Hymn  to  Bel,  line  22).     zi  (just  explained). 

muib-rd  (see  line  29). 

31.  ei  di§  6r-lim-ma  dimmer  Dumu-zi- da-kam 
Thirty  lines.     Hymn  to  Tammuz. 

ei :  GESPU  with  the  value  es  means  "thirty",  dis  is  frequently 
a  determinative  before  proper  names,  but  here  seems  to  mean  "line". 

eW  lim-ma  (see  Hymn  to  Bel,  colophon). 

dimmer  Dumu-zi-da-kam :  dimmer  Dumu-zi  (line  3).  da  (Hymn 
to  Bel,  line  4).     ham  (Hymn  to  Sin,  line  27). 


Glossary 


Page 

aba 66 

abba 65 

abgin 77 

abdamen 35 

abru 76 

azaggi 53 

akad 37 

akazu&u 62 

akala 73 

ama 29 

amdnkiga 60 

ana 77 

ana-am 76 

anzakku 58 

Annaka 74 

anpadde 78 

anSdgga 48 

arali 79 

ASsuhud 46 

aba 73 

ama 62 

ame 34 

a 26 

dzu 47 

i 51 

ibmalla 60 

ide 28 

izba 41 

im 42 

iminnabimeS 64 

imdasiggi 62 

immindul 62 

imsi 53 

ir 33 

\ 65 

id 53 

e 51 


ebi 
elum 
en . 


54 
37 
38 


Page 

enab 40 

Enzu 55 

EnliM 46 

erimna 29 

erita 69 

eS 48 

eqalani 73 

Lnernugal 45 

eta 69 

e-ani 69 

egd 48 

erra 72 

u 38 

udda 61 

Udkibnunnage 53 

ukugalla 61 

ummeSildld 64 

ummeSisisi 64 

Unugka 75 

ursag 79 

ur&azu 62 

usunnage 74 

ume-dm 68 

iimu-egul 68 

iimu-cse 68 

itmune 26 

unela 30 

u G4 

ugalla 01 

udeS 51 

usuddu 52 

ba-edihuldhe 63 

Babbareta 35 

BabbarSuSu 35 

bagantalld 65 

banibag 41 

banda 69 

baraka 75 

barru-a 61 

bartabba 60 

6 


—    82 


Pago 

"/ 68 

I'icitnc 49 

bur 68 

ga 33 

gaba 29 

galgale 67 

garmu 31 

garrami 69 

gaidn 36 

gigg« 28 

gitma 66 

giS 79 

gig 67 

qin 41 

gii 80 

geSni 68 

gugage 80 

gurunnaka 78 

gurra 39 

gi 31 

'da 40 

damalra 32 

damdUa 33 

ii/ztika 65 

dimmer 26 

dimmerrine 38 

ugga 68 

Dumuzi 73 

M 32 

da 34 

za 62 

za-egin 67 

zada 37 

zal 32 

zibbarage 75 

eigaeuni 47 

zigi-en 66 

zidazu 68 

zuge 78 

ha-e 39 

hade-a 58 

luimunlbnene 39 

harm 69 

liiirhara 65 

hn-f. 39 

hulmal 76 

l.ndhi 50 

jumu 46 

39 

Id 41 

Icalamma 61 

fcoJoid 78 

tairabi 76 

kdikaaage 75 


Paife 

hibala 67 

kika 75 

ku-a 79 

kurkurra 27 

laluia 32 

kihe-a 54 

lid 49 

limma 42 

lugalra 51 

luh 66 

ma 30 

mah 54 

manibsi 40 

mara 50 

mdmen 38 

m&gur 44 

mini  im 48 

me-a 41 

llidnmZH 38 

Merri 64 

mu-ibrdrd 80 

mu-egin 40 

mu-cdamal 37 

mu-eSinmaS 50 

mubi 42 

muduru 51 

muzu 56 

muhlia 68 

miihzuSu 67 

muhiuiSii 68 

inula  ...         64 

mumbnene 39 

murad&d 66 

mutin 76 

miidim 32 

Midlilli 40 

MfflUra 47 

mimi 51 

miniba-e-e 78 

miinditnaka 63 

miuimid 78 

miiitnabc-c 77 

mioisimal 76 

miinsugamu 74 

miiuriiriirii 61 

utiui.iubbi 77 

miintilli 78 

nanam 72 

Nandra 77 

nd 67 

nii-d 31 

ndmga 41 

mhiKuka 24 

ndtii 34 


—    83 


Page 

ni 77 

nimgir 66 

nimme 77 

ninzu 37 

Ninlil 62 

nisia 42 

m 37 

riikige 59 

nitena 25 

ningti 50 

ninru 52 

nene 78 

nesig 31 

nela 41 

nu 54 

Nudimmude 52 

nunuzdm 33 

numti 36 

sagezi 40 

sagmalmdlge 79 

sagmdl 32 

salduggazune 50 

salzi 50 

siba .  28 

siba-e 40 

sigiSSe 79 

siggazune 47 

silimmdni 33 

su 68 

sug 54 


Page 

suSisii 66 

padazune 48 

PAHADU 77 

karra 31 

rii 66 

riiti-azu 49 

Sd 37 

Sdzizi 80 

&amu 76 

Sarii 39 

Sisunukima 45 

Siskima 54 

Se 38 

Sesmu 79 

sernial 25 

sermdllazune 47 

§u 41 

Su-ummeti 67 

$uba 77 

Sugil 42 

Suza 52 

tdltaltal 80 

tiiu 41 

te 75 

tega 66 

tuggim 62 

tukana 79 

turture 67 

turturzu 68 

tuSena 72 


CORRIGENDA 


Page  1 6,  line  43,  for  "  Sis-ki  an  "  read  "  Sis-ki  an." 
"      19,    "    44,  for  "(A.  SI)  #•  A.  SI  (58)"  read  "(A.  SI) 

*  (58)." 
"     56,    "     36,  for  "of  the  word  of  the  word  "  read  "  of  the 

word." 
"     58,    "       8,  for  "day,  of  course"  read  "day  of  curse." 
"     60,    "       6,  for  "  tab-tab-ba"  read  "  bar-tab-ba." 
"     73,    "     10,  for  "ses-e"  read  " ses-e." 


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